Test Tubes & Pom-Poms
by clones-and-thrones
Summary: An Orphan Black high school AU focusing mainly on Cophine. And when I say "mainly" I mean HELLA! Cosima is a junior at Sheldon High who faces sudden popularity after her success in an international science competition. She also faces attraction to Delphine, the French transfer student, cheerleader, and all-around Miss Hottie Popular.
1. Chapter 1

Cosima wasn't quite sure what she expected her junior year at Sheldon High to be like, but she definitely didn't think she'd be greeted with something startlingly close to… popularity? She had never exactly been _not_ popular. She was nerdy… she was fully aware (and rather proud) of that. But she was also quite talkative and charming, and she'd never thought of herself as unattractive. She figured she was cute enough, even if she was rather small and child-like when all the other girls seemed to be getting curves and loads of attention. Her friend group wasn't particularly huge either, but they were all amazing, and her parents were the best a kid could ask for. She knew she was absolutely going to kill it in college; her future was bright with promises of scientific discoveries, Nobel prizes, and hopefully a sweet pad by the beach with a super-hot babe (or maybe even some stud) by her side. Yeah, she was pretty damn happy with her life just the way it was.

Which is why the first day of junior year thoroughly rattled her. There seemed to be an endless parade of hello's and variations on "How was your summer?" coming her way as she wandered about the courtyard in front of the school, skateboard and book-bag in tow, looking for her friends. Some of the people who talked to her were acquaintances, people she vaguely recognized from classes before. Some she had no clue who they were. They came in all shapes and sizes… which is a nice way of saying "from every clique-affiliation." Sheldon High School wasn't the school from _The Breakfast Club_ by any means… cliques weren't nearly that strict or "fixed" there. But high school does have a way of categorizing people. And Cosima couldn't help but notice some of the people vying for her attention were actually legit popular kids: attractive, rich, sporty, preppy, smart, or any combination of those. Most kids would be over the moon to receive so much attention, and from such a wide variety of their peers. But it just confused her to no end.

She was just about to run inside and take cover in the ladies' room when she saw Sarah, her signature smirk painted across her face as she swaggered across the courtyard toward Cosima. She wasted no time. "Bloody hell, Cos. What did you do? Text someone your tits or somethin'? I've heard your name like twenty times already and I just got here."

"Holy watershed, I have no freakin' idea! I feel like Ashton Kutcher's gonna jump out at any minute and tell me I got punked!"

"So… no tit pic, then? Ow!" Sarah rubbed her arm where Cosima had smacked her. "What was that for? It was an honest question."

"I'm serious, dude." Cosima was starting to fidget nervously, picking at the chipped paint on the bottom of her skateboard. "No one has said anything specific, and none of them are being rude. In fact, they're all being super nice. I don't know why, but that worries me even more." She looked around then. People were still looking at her every now and then, and most likely talking about her, but the presence of Sarah seemed to discourage most of them. She couldn't help but smile at that. Sarah had just gotten out of juvie at the beginning of summer.

Sarah looked her up and down for a moment, her face thoughtful before finally relaxing back into her natural smirk. "Well, stickin' with my theme of the morning, which seems to be tits… maybe it's because you finally went through puberty. Seriously, Cos… where did those come from and how can I get some? You had to have gained an entire cup size over the summer!"

Cosima blinked in confusion, as if the thought were entirely ludicrous, then she looked down at her chest. "Well… yeah, I mean… maybe they are a bit bigger. Maybe it's the style of the new bras…"

"And your hips!" Sarah interrupted, accusatorily. "Yeah, no way it's just the clothes… you bitch! I thought we were gonna be on the Itty Bitty Titty Committee together forever." She tried feigning a pout, but pouting wasn't really Sarah's style, and she immediately busted out in throaty laughter.

"Oi! I thought I heard a cackling hyena around here somewhere." Felix, Sarah's foster brother, bumped up against Sarah good-naturedly. He was a year younger than they were, and very fabulously gay. "What's so funny?"

"We're trying to figure out why everyone's being so nice to Cos," Sarah said matter-of-factly, as if she hadn't just been cracking boob jokes.

"As if that's so strange," Cosima said wryly. _It's not the niceness,_ she thought. _It's the amount of it._

"Maybe it's because you're the cover story on the school website," Felix said in the most nonchalant tone Cosima had ever heard. Both girls looked at him in shock, eagerly awaiting an explanation.

"I'm… what?" Cosima all but squeaked. Then all of the questions came out in a rush. "Why? What is the cover story about? When was it put up there? How and why did I not know about this?"

Felix sighed, looking less than interested as he gazed off towards where some of the jocks were hanging out. It took Sarah smacking him across the back of the head to bring him back to attention. "Oh! Uh… it was something to do with science. You won that award over the summer, yeah?"

Cosima grinned proudly. "Yeah, the Intel Foundation Young Scientists Award."

"Well, they've put you up on the school website to show you off. And of course everyone has to go through the website to check their email and get their schedule, so yeah… they've all seen it."

"I still think it's your tits," Sarah said. "I mean, they've known you were freakishly smart forever. Why would that article on the website make any difference?"

Felix looked confused for a second before looking down at Cosima's body. "Shit, you're right. They went from plums to AT LEAST sizable oranges!" He and Sarah snickered at their crassness for a moment, only laughing harder when Cosima cleared her throat conspicuously.

"Come on, guys… seriously!" she pleaded. "My newly-found bosom aside, Sarah has a point. My nerdiness is common knowledge. What's the big deal if I'm on the website?" A thought hit her all of a sudden. She sat down on one of the benches and dug in her bag, pulling out her tablet. She swiped it on and clicked on the browser, which opened automatically to the school's website. Sure enough, there she was. The article was the main story on the home page, just as Felix had said. It was titled, "Sheldon High's Brightest Star Shines at Intel ISEF" and was accompanied by a photo of her standing next to a screen showcasing her project, a program depicting the effects of epigenetics on clone cells. She was wearing her medal and smiling her brightest smile in the picture, and she couldn't help but smile now. _That was the best moment of my life,_ she thought. Sarah's voice by her ear startled her.

"Yep, look!" she said, pointing at the picture. "You were looking quite curvaceous that day. And you were dressed nice and smiling pretty. Plus it says you won $50,000, and you're kinda famous in a way, too. Like, in the smart people community. People know who you are. Important people. No wonder people are being nice to you! Success, money, good looks. You're lucky I'm not trying to jump your bones!"

"Same here," Felix chimed in. "But I mean… even though 50k is a lot of money… don't think I could go straight for it. Sorry Cosima."

"No offense taken. But it wouldn't matter how much they gave me because it's all scholarship money. It all goes to whichever university I end up attending." To someone like Cosima, that was perfect. Her parents made decent money as college professors, but having all that money put back for college now was such a relief.

"Well it's not like you have to tell everyone that," Sarah said. "Just go with it."

"What do you mean?" Cosima asked.

"Soak it all in. Be popular or whatever." She paused for a beat before adding (with her most mischievous grin) "And get me into their sick parties, of course."

"Oh come on, Sarah… like we want to be associated with a bunch of 'normals' like-"

"Hey Cosima!" called a seriously buff, handsome young man as he walked past, smiling and waving at Cosima. He didn't stop, just kept walking and made his way up the front steps of the building, followed by a few of his friends. He was wearing a letterman jacket, and Cosima thought she saw the name 'Dierden' on the back of it.

"Holy Tilda Swinton! Paul Dierden just said hi to you! Like… senior football star, body-that-would-put-Channing-Tatum-to-shame Paul Dierden!" Felix was practically drooling.

"Oi! Earth to Fee! What happened to 'we don't want to be associated with a bunch of normals?' Big Dick Paul Dierden is the twattiest normal of them all." Sarah said. "Besides, Cos won't do it anyway. She's too academically oriented to try and have much of a social life. Aren't ya, Cos?" Cosima didn't answer. "Cos?"

Cosima didn't answer because she was staring at the next article that had popped up on the school's homepage. Or, more specifically, the picture that went with the article. The girl in the picture was without a doubt a total knockout. Golden-blonde curls, a dazzling smile, big beautiful eyes, and a body that every teenage girl in the world would be jealous of. Cosima wasn't jealous, but she was struck by how much she wanted her _in_ _other ways._ Apparently this girl was a new transfer student. She had just moved here from France with her parents and was set to join the school's "elite" cheerleading squad as well as the volleyball team. Her name was Delphine Cormier, and Cosima was pretty sure she was already halfway in love with the girl just from the picture and the little bit the article said about her.

"EARTH TO COSIMA!" Sarah shouted. "Deaf or what?! The bell's ringin'. We'll talk more about this later, yeah? No decisions about future popularity without consulting us. Try not to suffocate under so much attention. I still need to copy your notes and shit." And without another word, she and Felix were headed off to their classes.

Cosima looked at the picture for a second more and then sighed, putting her tablet in her bag. She sat there for a minute, her foot idly rolling her skateboard back and forth along the ground, as was her habit. _Maybe being popular wouldn't be such a bad thing,_ she thought. _Delphine will totes be hella popular. She's gorgeous and athletic and most likely highly sociable. Wait… WHAT ARE YOU THINKING?! GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER NIEHAUS! YOU HAVEN'T EVEN MET THIS GIRL! She could be a raging bitch or completely brain-dead… or both! Plus, why the hell should I want to change my life now? Everything is perfectly fine just the way it is! Isn't it?_

She sighed again and looked up… she was already going to be late for class. There was hardly anyone left out in the courtyard. Being late on the first day was so not the thing. She stood up slowly, one of her feet still resting lightly on her board, and started to sling her book bag over her shoulders. As she did it, though, her foot lost purchase on the board and it went skidding out from under her and down the walkway. Cosima recovered easily, barely stumbling before taking off after it. The board was just coming to a halt and Cosima was just about to reach it when it happened.

Someone had been running from the other way, but Cosima had been so focused on her skateboard that she wasn't paying attention. And apparently they weren't paying much attention either because they stepped right in the middle of the skateboard, their forward momentum carrying them a few feet before the board skidded out from beneath their feet and they started falling face-first. Cosima barely had time to react… all she saw was blonde hair and long limbs… but she jumped forward (Why? She didn't know. Some chivalrous instinct kicked in, she guessed.) with her arms extended, intending to catch them. It was a poor idea, in hindsight… or maybe just the best idea she ever had. The person (a girl, it seemed, from the screams) collided with Cosima and the pair of them went reeling backwards and (luckily) into the grass. They still hit pretty hard, and Cosima took the brunt of the impact, which knocked most of the wind out of her.

Cosima didn't know how long they were lying there, not moving or saying anything. It was probably just a few seconds, but it seemed like minutes at least. The girl smelled amazing. Cosima wasn't a big scent specialist, but she pegged it for something like… cherry blossoms? Maybe? Whatever it was, the girl's hair smelled delicious. And the weight of her sprawled on top of her was equally so. The girl lifted her head, looking around like a startled deer before bringing her gaze to meet Cosima's.

_Oh shit…_ Cosima thought to herself, with a sharp intake of breath. _Delphine Cormier._

"Quoi?" Delphine asked, her expression dazed, confused, and more than a little embarrassed. Cosima didn't answer, but she did immediately register that she had said Delphine's name out loud. Well… not SAID exactly… more like muttered it under her breath. It was all lost in the moment, though, as Delphine sat up bolt right and started apologizing profusely. "Oh, je suis vraiment désolé… I mean… I am SO SO sorry, Miss…?"

She was looking at Cosima expectantly. Cosima didn't know what to say. Well, she DID. She should tell her what her name was. But something about the situation was just so oddly funny to her. There she was, with a girl she'd never met, but was wildly attracted and even _drawn_ to (the same girl whose photo and story she'd been drooling over only moments before, no less), straddling her hips after tripping on her skateboard and tumbling right into her. They could have been seriously hurt. But they weren't. And it was funny. Cosima couldn't help herself; she started giggling. Delphine was confused by her laughter at first, or maybe Cosima's laughter was just that infectious. But eventually they were laughing together and Cosima was shaking, wiping her eyes and trying to get a hold of herself.

"I think perhaps you hit your head too hard," Delphine said once she caught her breath. "Seriously, are you alright? I did not even see you until it was much too late. Was it your… thing… I slipped on? I do not remember the English word."

"Skateboard," Cosima said, still a bit breathless. _Oh god her accent is cute AND sexy!_ "And yeah, it's mine. My bad, though. I shouldn't have let it get away from me. And no, my head's fine. Or at least, I didn't hit it. I'm just weird. So the jury's still out on whether there's anything technically wrong with my head or not."

Delphine considered this for a second, her brow furrowing in the most adorable way, before relaxing. "Ah, you are making a joke. Sorry… I'm still a bit shaken up." Then she smiled her brightest smile, the one from the picture… except now Cosima could see that she had a dimple in one cheek and it was officially the cutest dimple she'd ever seen. She didn't even know she liked dimples. But, despite how much she enjoyed this, they were in quite an interesting and compromising position.

"Umm… not to be a drag or anything, but…as much as I love a good first-day-back scandal… not sure how us getting caught like this would pan out. For you, I mean. It could do nothing but help my rep, I'm sure. It's not every day I get a hot French chick sitting in my lap before I even ask for her name and number. Or say hello for that matter." She grinned cheekily and for good measure extended her hand and added, "Hey, I'm Cosima."

"Delphine," she took Cosima's hand in hers, her grip surprisingly firm. She stood up carefully, pulling Cosima with her. They both busied themselves with brushing the grass of their clothes and hair, and looking for any scrapes or damage. "This was quite an unusual way to meet someone, yes?"

"Hella unusual," Cosima replied, still grinning cheekily. "But I mean, normally it takes more than just my skateboard to get a cute girl to fall for me, so maybe unusual is good." _Ugh did I seriously just say that?! Holy evo-devo, I'm lame!_

But Delphine smiled, and her cheeks took on a rosy hue that was equal parts endearing and enticing. "Maybe so," she said, reaching up to brush a piece of grass or something off of Cosima's shoulder that Cosima wasn't entirely sure was even there. Delphine's touch lingered and Cosima felt it even after she finally pulled it away. Cosima felt herself starting to blush too, and that was very strange because Cosima just DIDN'T blush. Even when she felt awkward, she was able to make some smart-ass joke or comment and that was that. But this girl was something else.

"I… uh… I'm already insanely late for class…" Cosima began.

"Oui! Moi aussi… me too. Would you mind showing me where room…" she rummaged around in her purse for a sheet of paper and pulled it out. "… C-312 is? I was in the wrong building, I think. That's why I was running to get over here and then we… ran into each other."

"Sure thing!" Cosima said with way more enthusiasm than she intended. "Uh… my first class is in building C as well. So it shouldn't be a problem."

"Super!" Delphine exclaimed, and she smiled that smile again. Then she was looking around for something. "Oh!" She walked the few meters over to get Cosima's skateboard, lifting it gingerly and bringing it back to her. Cosima barely suppressed her laughter. Delphine had clearly never been around skateboards before. It was cute and Cosima thought she'd love to show her how to skate, or at the very least show off some of her own moves. "Here is your… skateboard." She pronounced the word very carefully.

"Merci beaucoup mademoiselle," Cosima said in an exaggerated French accent, which Delphine giggled at. They walked the rest of the way to class in relative silence, but it was a companionable silence. And Cosima could have sworn she caught Delphine sneaking glances as much as she was sneaking her own. Their hands even barely brushed a few times. Once they were at the door to Delphine's classroom, they both stopped. "Well, here we are. Thank you for flying with Air Niehaus. We hope you enjoy your stay at Room C-312, and hope to see you again soon."

Delphine giggled again. Cosima decided she loved that sound. "Thank you. It's umm… it's very nice to make a friend in the brave new world."

Those words sunk in for a second and Cosima was smiling in spite of herself, nodding in agreement, "Yeah."

"I better get in there," Delphine said, a bit hesitantly.

"Yeah, okay," Cosima replied. And then Delphine was leaning in, and Cosima barely had time to think "_French! She's French! This is what they do!"_ before they were kissing each other's cheeks. Their lips stayed maybe half a beat longer than what she would have expected was appropriate, but she couldn't bring herself to care.

"Ciao," Delphine said with a little wave. And then she was inside her classroom and Cosima was standing out in the hall with a stomach full of butterflies and a head full of warring ideas.

"Wow. Either I'm seriously screwed, or junior year is gonna be the best fuckin' year of my life," she muttered to herself before she practically skipped down the hall to her class, skateboard still under her arm. Before she entered her classroom to no doubt get berated by her calculus teacher, she looked down at her skateboard, with its chipped edges and its custom double-helix patterned paint on the bottom. "Thanks, little buddy. Best wingman ever! Scott and Tony aren't gonna believe this!"


	2. Chapter 2

"Seriously?!"

"Shh!"

"Sorry," Scott whispered. "Seriously? She was… on top of you?"

"Yeah." Cosima looked around to see if anyone was paying attention to them. Everybody was either dozing off, on their phones, or somehow managing to pay attention to the calculus teacher drone on about the syllabus. She turned her attention back to Scott. "We were lying there like that for probably like… two or three minutes, maybe. Well, we talked too. We laughed and introduced ourselves and then we got up."

"Woah," Scott seemed at a loss for words.

"Woah, what?"

"Woah as in I'm going to have to give skateboarding another try."

Cosima had trouble containing her giggles. "You tried _once _and you barely stood up on the board. As soon as you started to lose your balance, you gave up. Said your hand-eye coordination was limited to video games." She paused for a second, then grinned her Cosima-grin, equal parts cheeky and teasing. "Even though I still beat you at that, too."

"I didn't want to die a virgin."

"So what's changed? Not your status as a virgin, that's for sure." She poked her tongue out between her teeth. Scott narrowed his eyes at her in an attempt to be menacing. But Scott was anything but menacing. Gangly, messy cow-licked hair, glasses, Star Trek t-shirt, and just about the nicest guy you could meet.

"Well if skateboarding helps with the ladies, then it's sort of worth the risk, right? Impress the ladies or die trying.

"No dying, Scotty. Maybe some scrapes and bruises… slight chance of broken bones. But no dying. We'll teach you. The whole group," Cosima said. Scott nodded in agreement, though he seemed nervous.

"So… this girl… she's the French transfer, right? Delphine? I've heard a lot of the guys talking about her already. Not that they include me in their conversations."

"Yup, that's her," Cosima replied. Her smile then started to melt into a frown. "Wait… what are they saying about her?" She didn't like the idea of what the guys were saying… what she KNEW guys would be saying.

"Just the usual stuff that you'd expect. Hot. French. Cheerleader. Parents are loaded. And then more about her being hot and French." Scott thought for a second and then sighed. "Man, we had to sign up for German freshman year instead of French!"

Cosima echoed Scott's sigh. "Ugh, I know! And yeah, I know it's my fault… it was my idea to take German because of my family name being Niehaus. Man, it would really be awesome to impress her with some knowledge of French. Well… at least Katja thinks it's cool we can hold semi-intelligent conversations with her in German."

"Yeah, at least there's that. Do you… do ya think Katja will be one of the group teaching me how to skate?" Scott seemed very shy all of a sudden. Well… MORE shy than he usually was. The gears in Cosima's head started turning and she smiled a little. Scott apparently noticed her smile. "Hey no looking at me like that… I just… okay, she's really, really cool and she doesn't make fun of me or anything. Plus she's really hot and I don't want to look like a total doofus in front of her. WHY ARE YOU SMILING AT ME LIKE THAT?"

"Nothing! Nothing. I just… it's cute, is all. And I don't mean that in a patronizing way, which is shocking for me, I know. I figure it will just be Tony and me teaching you, for the most part. But don't be surprised if Fe, the Twins, or Katja show up." Scott nodded in understanding just as the bell rang to dismiss them to second period. She gave Scott an encouraging hug and then they headed off to their classes, Scott to history, and Cosima to English.

The next few classes went pretty smoothly, though a lot of people were still talking to her that never had before, and some even asked Cosima to sit with them. Most of the time she couldn't really refuse without being rude. The only exception was history class, which she had with Sarah and Helena, whom everyone just called the Twins. Helena was still kind of upset that Sarah had left without her that morning, but she never stayed mad at Sarah for long.

Then came lunchtime. She sat down with the Twins, Scott, Felix, and Katja. Tony wasn't there yet, but she knew he'd been scheduled to have shop class right before lunch, so he was probably running a little late.

"Hey guys, I'm gonna go get Tony a sandwich or something. Be right back," she said. They all nodded and hummed around mouthfuls of food. She was halfway across the lunchroom when she heard someone say her name, and then a second later there was a hand on her arm. She turned around to see Alison Hendrix smiling at her, all perky and dressed almost head-to-toe in pink.

"Hi Cosima!" Alison said. She stood with a posture that was unnervingly perfect… too perfect to be comfortable, in Cosima's opinion. But her smile seemed comfortable enough.

"Hey Alison," Cosima paused for a beat, not really sure what to say to this girl who was practically a stranger to her. "Umm… what's up?"

"Oh, we…" she turned to motion toward her group of friends sitting at the table behind her. All of them were sporty, beautiful, popular to the extreme. They tried to look casual as Alison gestured toward them. "… were just wondering if you wanted to sit with us. If you'd rather sit with your friends, I understand. But they're invited too. I know Felix from theatre class. We're doing our first scene together." Alison smiled again and it seemed a little less forced that time. Cosima knew Fe was rather fond of Alison as well (at least "as far as normals go" he would say), though he'd never formally introduced her to them.

Cosima looked past Alison to the group of popular kids, and then back over toward where her friends were sitting. All of them were paying attention. As a matter of fact, most of the people around were paying attention. She was just about to tell Alison she'd have to think about it when someone bumped into her back. It wasn't a hard bump, but it did jostle her a bit.

"Merde," she heard someone mutter. Cosima was smiling before she could even consciously connect all the dots. Delphine was busy kicking her foot free of someone's backpack strap when Cosima turned around. Once she was free of it, she looked up to see it was Cosima whom she'd run into. Her cheeks got pink, but her smile was automatic and completely radiant.

"We've gotta stop meeting like this," Cosima teased. It was out before she could stop it, and she mentally chastised herself for flirting while literally the whole lunch room was watching.

"Oui, people might get the wrong idea," Delphine teased back. And she winked. _SHE WINKED! _Cosima thought. _SHE FREAKING WINKED AT ME!_

"Wrong idea about what?" someone asked. It was Aynsley Norris, who was co-captain of the cheerleading squad with Alison. You only needed to be at Sheldon High for a few minutes to know that she was a major douche. Well, Cosima thought so anyway. Aynsley had gotten up from her seat and was now standing beside Alison, who looked none-too-pleased about her butting in. "Do you two know each other?"

Cosima didn't like the accusatory looks Aynsley was shooting Delphine. Everything about her body language, facial expression, and tone showed a complete disdain for "mingling with the commoners." So Cosima was about to jump in and say something that would hopefully diffuse the situation, when Delphine did instead.

"Cosima is just referring to my secret clumsiness. Earlier today I slipped on her skateboard and I could have been seriously hurt, but she… helped me. And now I bumped into her again." Delphine put her hand on Cosima's shoulder then, and Cosima had never thought a touch to the shoulder could induce butterflies.

"Yeah," Cosima agreed. "Wouldn't be good for such an acclaimed athlete to be thought of as clumsy, right?"

"No, not at all," Alison chimed in. "It was very nice of you to help Delphine, Cosima."

"Never pegged you for clumsy, Delphine," Aynsley said. "We might have to be careful with you on the squad."

"I think she's pretty graceful," Cosima said firmly. "Her clumsiness is my fault." Then she gave her best cocky smile. "I just have that effect on people, y'know."

Everyone got a kick out of that. Alison even had to bite back a smile. Aynsley didn't know what to say. Her boyfriend Chad, however, was never at a loss for words. He wasn't nearly as douchey as Aynsley. Well, he WAS a douche. But a likable one, for the most part.

"I believe that," Chad said from his spot at the table. "Bump into each other all you want, ladies. Cool with me!" Another round of laughter, and a serious blush from Delphine, but the tension was gone. No one was paying attention to Aynsley, who was going back to her seat.

"So!" Alison began again. "The horrible manners of my colleagues aside… would you like to sit with us?"

"Umm… I don't know. This isn't some _Mean Girls _kind of thing, is it? Because pink looks good on you, Alison, but I don't even think I can do it on Wednesdays."

Alison looked mortified. "Pink looks good on anyone at any time! But no… and I'm also inviting your friends, so I'm no Regina George."

"Non, that would be Aynsley," she heard Delphine mutter behind her. Cosima practically snorted with the effort to hold her laughter in. Alison looked confused, so Cosima tried to reassure her.

"Let me ask my friends, and I'll come back and let you know." Did she want to join them? She looked at the group of people seated at that table, and then she looked at Delphine. She knew the answer was a definite yes if Delphine was going to be there.

She made her way back over to the table where her friends were sitting. Tony was there now and, from the look on his face, he'd witnessed the scene at the popular table. He'd also eaten the rest of her lunch, but she couldn't bring herself to be mad at him. She'd never gotten him his sandwich, anyway.

"Woah, blondie's a total bitch, right?" Tony said as Cosima sat back down.

"What?!" Cosima said, already on the defensive. "Delphine?"

"Nah, not sexy French goldilocks. The one who looks like she's constipated… she's got the quarterback boyfriend."

"Oh, Aynsley!" Cosima laughed. "Yeah, she's a total bitch, alright."

"I hear we're invited for tea," Sarah said.

"Yeah…" Cosima didn't know how to talk them into it, if they were even against it. "What do you guys think? I mean, we could just give it a try tomorrow. If they're all a bunch of tools, we can just come back here and sit and it will all be fine."

"Ja, zat sounds gut to me. Vhy not?" Katja said. "I'm looking for new members for my band, anyvay. Maybe zey have some talent over zere."

"Yeah, I'm down," Scott piped up almost immediately after. Cosima bit back a smile.

Felix sighed and dramatically rolled his eyes, but Cosima could tell he really wanted to do it. "Oh alright… I need to discuss my scene with Alison anyway."

"I'll go too," Helena said. "They are closer to the food… and there is jello tomorrow."

"Well shit, I guess I'm in too if this meathead is going," Sarah nudged Helena playfully.

"Do not call me this," Helena said, even though she smiled and nudged her sister back.

"How about you, Tony?" Cosima asked.

"You know I'm down for whatever, dreads." He smiled, flashing his silver tooth at her. He still had a smudge of dirt on his face from shop class, but it did nothing but add character to his already scruffily handsome face. "I take it Delfiiiine is spoken for, though? From the way you're drooling over her. No judgment, though. Frenchie's got it goin' on in all the right places. You go for it, girl."

"Can't fence this shit in, right?" Cosima said laughingly.

"You know it babe!" Tony laughed with her. That was their thing. It had been Tony's first. But it just sort of fit them both… fit the whole group, really. They were weird, and they loved it.

"Okay, so I'll tell Alison we're sitting with them tomorrow, since lunch is almost over anyway." Cosima got up and headed over to the popular table again. She tapped Alison on the shoulder and informed her of the news. She seemed genuinely happy to hear it, as did most of the other people there. Especially Delphine. _God Cosima, at least TRY and let your eyes wander to other places besides her. _

The bell rang signaling lunch's end, and she got hugs from some of the people there. Chad even picked her up, much to her surprise. Delphine hadn't left yet, though most of the people were already filing out. Cosima was about to say something to her when Tony passed by with Cosima's bag (complete with attached skateboard) and handed it off, wriggling his eyebrows at Delphine in the process.

"Sup Delfiiine," he said goofily before sauntering out of the lunchroom, chuckling at his own joke.

"Quoi?" Delphine said, confused.

"Don't worry about him," Cosima said, smiling. "He's just a giant dork. But I love him."

"Oh! Is he your… boyfriend?"

"Tony? Oh no… more like, he's my wingman and I'm his. We're best buddies. Though we do flirt shamelessly… it's just part of our charm." Cosima flashed her best grin.

Delphine smiled in return, nodding. "Oui… c'est bien."

"What's good?" Cosima asked.

"Quoi?" Delphine said again.

"You said 'Yes, that's good.' What is good, exactly?" Cosima was pushing her luck, flirting more openly now, but she figured _why the hell not?! _"Is it good that he's not my boyfriend? Is it good that we're friends? Or is it good that we're charming?"

Delphine seemed to think about it seriously for a second. She started nibbling her lower lip, and Cosima thought she was going to forget what she even asked in the first place when Delphine finally said, "I think it's all good." Cosima was certain Delphine realized she was looking at her lips, but neither of them realized they had instinctively moved closer to one another.

"You know what I think?" Cosima said, a hint of daring in her voice.

"What is it you think Cosima?"

_Well first of all I freakin' LOVE how you say my name. Don't do that while I'm trying to be seductive, woman!_

"I think…" she moved in slightly, until they were basically toe to toe, "that we have a habit of ending up alone together." Cosima noticed the hitch in Delphine's breathing, and that she'd started to nibble her bottom lip again. Cosima wasn't so subtle about noticing it this time. Her eyes held there a few seconds before flicking back up to Delphine's. And then she leaned in, but instead of going up on her tiptoes to kiss Delphine (like she really, REALLY wanted to), she leaned around her to grab Delphine's bookbag off the table, their bodies brushing together in the process. When she pulled back, she saw the disappointment and desire written on Delphine's face. "And this is the second time today we've made each other late for class. Another habit we've already established."

"Oui, but habits can be bad or good, right?" Delphine ventured.

"Sure," Cosima said, grinning cheekily. "And this is only the second occurrence of both, so… I can't say which it is, or if it's even a habit yet. However…"

"Quoi?"

"I would totally like to walk you to class again. And that's a habit I can definitely dig."

"Dig? Is this… good or…?"

"Oh yeah! It means I would really like to."

"D'accord. Then… oui, I would totally dig that too."

They were both grinning and blushing like total dorks, but Cosima had seen that look on Delphine's face. She might regret this one day, but for right now… she had her sights set on the hottest girl in school, and her aim was pretty freakin' sweet.


	3. Chapter 3

(_Authors note: Thank you guys so much for your lovely feedback! It honestly means the world to me and it keeps me writing. So thank you again and please continue to let me know what you think or even make suggestions. I'm most active on Tumblr, so if you haven't followed me, please do so. It's the same name as on here. Also a big thanks to my friend Wynter for helping me with this chapter. I went to her for some general information. Enjoy you guys! More to come soon.)_

Cosima didn't really talk to Delphine after she walked her to class, even though it turned out that they had chemistry and gym together. She was praying to whatever power(s) that be that she would get Delphine as a lab partner. They hadn't been assigned yet because their teacher was still fairly new. And being in gym class with Delphine… well, Cosima saw nothing negative about that at all. Delphine seemed to exude a natural athleticism, even if she had stumbled both times she was in Cosima's presence.

Needless to say, Cosima was on cloud nine as she skated home from school that day. She was grinning like a fool and humming to herself. She almost missed the light at a crosswalk once; she was so caught up in her own thoughts. Before she knew it she was grinding to a halt outside her house and popping her board up, practically scampering up the steps. She was barely inside when she heard her mom's voice, "Cosima? Is that you?"

"Yeah mama, it's me," Cosima called as she made her way through the foyer and into the living room. "Where are you?" she said just as she passed her mom's seldom-used office. She caught movement out of the corner of her eye and saw her mom searching through stacks of papers. "What's going on?"

"Oh just lookin' for the paperwork I needed to fill out for the Dean. Looks like I might be the one taking the group of students on the trip to New Guinea after all." Her mom smiled then, beaming with excitement… the same kind of excitement Cosima felt about science. It was in these moments that Cosima wondered how it was that she wasn't biologically related to her… she seemed to inherit so much from her mom, if not the looks. Her mannerisms, her smile, her love of science and life… she was Briona Niehaus' daughter through-and-through.

"Really?! Oh mama, that's so exciting!" Cosima rushed to hug her.

"Hope you don't mind the smell of formaldehyde," Briona laughed even as she embraced her daughter. "Someone let the clumsiest TA carry the bucket of dissecting pigeons up to the lab today. I ran into her on the elevator."

"I'll get over it," Cosima giggled. "So will you be getting to study all the cool new species they just discovered there? Man, is there any way you can talk the university into letting me go with you?" She gave her mom her best puppy-dog face.

"Ah now pickney, you know you've gotta be a student to go," Briona said, her natural accent coming into her words, despite her having left Jamaica over twenty years before. It always came out whenever she was being exceptionally tender or angry. "But I promise, before you graduate, we'll go on an expedition of our own. Somewhere that evolution has been especially clever." She winked at Cosima, and Cosima immediately perked up.

"Deal! I'm holding you to that!" Cosima planted a kiss on her mom's cheek before skipping out of her office. "I'm gonna grab a bite, then Tony and I are gonna teach Scott how to get the ladies via skateboard."

"Speak of the devil! Look who I found out on the stoop." Cosima's dad was just coming in the door, followed closely by a grinning Tony.

"Tony!" Cosima's mom called out, rushing to give him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. She saw Tony blush and he actually smiled a shy smile. Tony was normally anything but shy, but Cosima knew how much her family's acceptance and love meant to him. He was always welcome there, even when he wasn't in his own house… and that was one of the few things that cracked Tony's rough exterior. "Now, don't go too hard on Scott, you two. It wouldn't do well for your father's chess tutor to be hospitalized. Right, Malcolm?"

"He's not my tutor!" Malcolm called back from the kitchen. "I don't need tutoring."

"Well you've still never beaten me in all the years we've known each other." Briona teased.

"That's because…" he said as he came back in the living room, "I have priorities. I'd rather lose at chess and have a happy wife, than beat her and spend the rest of my life regretting it. You're intensely competitive, Bri." She looked as if she was about to throw out a snarky remark when he leaned in and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "Don't worry, though. It's hot." Then he winked, a mischievous twinkle in his bright blue eyes.

"Oh yeeesh! Okay, 'rental PDA is SO. NOT. COOL! Come on Tony… we'll get something to eat on the way to the park." She was already dragging Tony towards the door as she said the last part.

"Later Mr. and Mrs. N! Have fun!" Tony snickered as he grinned back over his shoulder at them.

"Take your time!" Cosima heard her dad say just as the door shut behind them.

* * *

"So… you're really diggin' that French chick, huh? Like… hard!" Tony was asking as he and Cosima both sat against a railing, chewing on jerky sticks.

"Can you blame me, dude? Have you SEEN her?!"

"Oh I've definitely seen her, and I'm not blaming. I'm just curious cuz you seem preoccupied and hardly anything keeps you from shredding it up while we're here. Even teaching Spazzy McGee over there." He gestured towards Scott, who was just trying to skate back and forth on flat concrete without losing his balance.

"Don't be mean," Cosima chided. "Hey Scott! Try keeping both feet on a little longer, okay? Just let yourself roll for a bit." Then she turned back to Tony. "Umm… yeah, well I guess I'm sorta thinking about her. Mainly wondering if she was actually flirting with me or just being playful and making a new friend, ya know? Because a girl like that… it seems too good to be true that she could actually be interested."

Tony looked at her for a few seconds very seriously, then he smirked. "You say that like you've never made a straight girl question herself. Come on Cos, you're hot. You've always been hot. Even before you got those awesome jugs." He laughed when Cosima glared at him. "Yeah, Sarah was joking about it earlier. But seriously… you're a total catch, dreads. It's not outa the question that she'd dig you. Plus I mean… she's French."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Cosima was biting back a grin.

"Didn't they like… invent the female orgasm or something? No… wait… that was me!" Cosima laughed heartily at that. Tony just kept on going as if she wasn't laughing. "Well, they invented something sexy. And they're like super laidback and open about that kinda stuff." He paused for a minute then. "Hey, think she'd be into a threesome?"

"I dunno. I'll ask her. Right after I'm through asking her about which sex act her ancestors invented and if she's of the Sapphic persuasion." Just as she finished saying that, she caught sight of Katja, the Twins, and Felix strolling up. A thought flashed in her mind and Cosima grinned. "Hey Kat!"

"Ja?" Katja tossed down her board and hopped on, skating the rest of the way over towards Cosima. "Vat's up?"

"I've been trying to give Scott here a few pointers on skateboarding. Tony and I were gonna go in the bowl for a little bit… show the preteens over there how it's done. Think you could show him the ropes for a bit while we're in there?"

"Sure, no problem!" Katja nodded enthusiastically. She smiled at Scott as he rolled up beside them. "I'm sure he'll have ze hang of it in no time. I'm a gut teacher. Vatchu think, Scott? Think ve'll be racing by ze end of ze day?" Scott chuckled nervously and nodded.

As Cosima and Tony headed over towards the bowl and the half-pipes, Tony said "Hey, why'd you do that? You know he's totally crazy about her. He'll probably pout about you leaving him like that for the rest of the week."

"I'm not leaving him. I'm just giving him some time with her for a few minutes while we skate," Cosima explained. "Besides, Katja is really patient and I happen to know that she also digs Star Trek and nerdy boys. She's got a thing for Leonard from the Big Bang Theory. Scott's got a shot… he just needs to get more comfortable with himself."

"I get ya," Tony nodded. "But there is still probably a greater risk of him hurting himself now that Katja is here."

They looked back to see Katja showing Scott in great detail how to make a turn on the board. Scott was paying very close attention, nodding at almost every word she said. He was also grinning like an idiot. "Five bucks says he thanks me for this later," Cosima said cockily.

"Psshh you're on, dreads!" Tony shot back. Then they dropped in and it was all tricks and laughter and playfully shouted insults.

Turns out, Scott didn't have a single negative word to say for the rest of the evening. He was in smitten geek-boy heaven. Cosima figured she'd collect that five bucks by lunch the next day and then buy Delphine an ice cream with it.

* * *

"Co-si-ma!" a voice called out. Cosima turned from where she was standing in the snack bar line to see Delphine a few meters away, heading in her direction. Cosima felt a sudden rush of happiness at Delphine's presence. She hoped she didn't appear too eager or anything, but her smile was automatic.

"Hey Delphine. How's the American school system treating you? Ya know… in the whole day and a half you've been here."

"It's really nice so far. Everyone is so welcoming," Delphine replied as they moved further up in line. Cosima chuckled at that. "What's funny? Is it my English?"

"No no no! Your English is like… tres good. It's just that you seemed surprised at how welcoming everyone is. People tend to be welcoming of a gorgeous girl anywhere you go. And you're… well… you're on a whole other level. Like at least three levels above gorgeous." Cosima realized she was about to start rambling. Her hands were starting to move along with her words. She'd already said too much, so she let her hands fall to her sides and grinned crookedly at Delphine in what she hoped was a self-deprecating way.

Delphine was silent for a few seconds, her cheeks flushing the softest shade of pink as she took to nibbling her lower lip in what Cosima assumed was a nervous habit… the most endearing, alluring nervous habit she could imagine.

"You think I'm gorgeous?" Delphine asked almost shyly.

"Of course!" _So much for not appearing too eager, Niehaus. _"I mean… who wouldn't? You're a regulation hottie."

It was Delphine's turn to chuckle. "Okay then… what are you?"

"What do you mean?" Cosima asked, a bit puzzled.

"Well, if I'm a… as you say… _regulation hottie, _then you must be what? A special edition or something, yes?"

Cosima didn't know whether to blush furiously or laugh, so she settled for shy giggling, which just ended up sounding super flirty. But it was okay because Delphine was smiling at her and she was pretty sure the rest of the world had stopped existing the second Delphine had called her name. But then that illusion shattered with the sound of someone very noisily clearing their throat. Cosima practically jumped out of her skin.

"You ladies gonna order or what? You're holdin' up the line," the lunch lady said, obviously annoyed with the two of them.

"Umm yeah. Sorry!" Cosima looked at Delphine apologetically too, like it was her fault. She motioned Delphine forward. "After you, madame."

"Oh non! I actually brought my lunch. I just wanted to say hi. And to say that I was saving you a seat by me at the table." Then before Cosima knew what was happening, Delphine leaned in to kiss her cheek and was heading back to the table. Cosima shook her head, momentarily dizzied by the events of the past 30 seconds and the change of scenery as she looked at the grouchy old lunch lady. She went to place her order thinking _Damn Frenchwoman's gonna be the death of me._

As she carried her rather large and deliciously greasy slice of pizza to the table, she saw her friends had already settled down. Sarah seemed to be in some sort of heated discussion with Paul Dierden and Tony just looked smug as hell that he was sitting next to Jennifer Fitzsimmons, star of the swim team and voted cutest girl in the school yearbook since like sixth grade. Delphine had in fact saved her a spot between herself and Alison.

"Hey Cosima!" Alison said perkily as Cosima sat down. Everyone else echoed Alison's greeting and Cosima smiled , attempting to return all of the hello's individually.

"Dammit Art, you couldn't help me finish putting all the files away?!" another girl said angrily as she stormed in to take the seat opposite Alison and beside Arthur Bell.

"I do believe I'm your debate partner, Beth... not your mom." Art said dryly. "Besides, you lost the practice round. You put away the files."

"Fine. See if I help you next time when you lose."

"Like that will ever happen."

"You're such a dipshit," Beth growled. But she was grinning.

"Beth… language!" Alison scolded quietly.

"Oh please Ali, I've heard you say way worse when someone messes up a cheer. Besides, we all know you secretly dig the dirty talk," Beth winked and chuckled. So did almost everyone else. Alison just huffed and blushed and went back to talking to Felix about their scene.

"Speaking of cheerleading," Cosima said as she turned to Delphine. "What got you into it? I mean, maybe it's just my American mindset, but I didn't think cheerleading was a thing in France."

"It's becoming more of a thing, I think. Ever since that movie _Bring It On, _you know? But it's not really that mainstream yet. There isn't even a proper word for cheerleading in French. My parents just put me in gymnastics and dance when I was little because I was horribly clumsy and they wanted me to have an outlet for energy that would also make me more graceful. When my father decided to move over here for work, I thought I would give cheerleading a try. I like it so far."

"That's awesome," Cosima said enthusiastically. She loved listening to Delphine talk, hearing the way her accent mixed with the English language. It was lovely to listen to. Plus she loved learning more about Delphine. "I guess I'll totes have to come to a football game and see you do your thing." Delphine smiled, nodding happily.

"You mean you won't be there to watch us kick ass?" Chad fake-whined, acting offended for a second before laughing. "Nah, I mean… we totally are going to kick ass, right boys?" The guys all fist pumped and gave various affirmative shouts. "But if I were in the stands, I'd be looking at you ladies too. Nice glutes… especially you, Hendrix! OW!" Chad rubbed his side and looked at Aynsley accusingly. "What babe? I'm just messing around!"

"I just hope I don't embarrass myself," Delphine admitted quietly, so only Cosima could hear. "It is a bit different from gymnastics and dancing. With them, you just feel it the entire time. In cheerleading, you always have to smile and seem happy. I don't want to overdo it or be too… what's the word? Sullen?"

Cosima giggled. "Yeah, that's the right word. It's just funny to hear a teenager use it. Especially one whose first language isn't even English."

"Funny-good or funny-bad?" Delphine asked.

"Oh, definitely good. Way funny-good." Cosima reassured her.

Delphine smiled again and Cosima thought she'd never get tired of that smile, or being the cause of it. She was actually pretty sure making Delphine smile was her new favorite activity. They spent the rest of lunch getting to know one another better, and also chatting with everyone else when it was called for. By the end of lunch, Cosima had already decided that she'd found her new lunch spot.

* * *

After lunch came study hall, which seemed to drag on forever in Cosima's mind. She was looking forward to chemistry, because she'd get to see Delphine again. _Hehehe… we really do have CHEMISTRY together. Gosh, I'm lame, _she thought. _I'm never saying that out loud._

As it turns out, the chemistry teacher decided that partners would be switched up every new chapter. Something about getting to know each other better and learning to adapt in the work environment or whatever. But the first chapter didn't see Cosima and Delphine being partners, though they were at adjacent tables.

Cosima was partnered with Raj Singh, so she couldn't complain. He was really smart and she had to admit the kid was cute. Delphine was partnered with Cal Morrison, which Cosima was a bit jealous of. She knew Cal because he was kind of a geek in his own right, just like her. He was president of the robotics and engineering club at the school, and he'd taken their academic team to state two years in a row. Plus he was handsome, genuinely nice, and on the lacrosse team. So if Delphine was into guys… Cal would probably be her type. Still, she found it pretty hard to be mad at Cal because he was just so damn likable, and the guy hadn't done anything wrong.

She didn't really understand why she was so jealous in the first place. She barely knew Delphine, after all. It wasn't like her to be jealous of anyone. But she spent the better part of the period stealing glances over at their table. Delphine and Cal seemed to get along great, but Cosima could see nothing flirty about it. Cosima found that a bit odd honestly, because Delphine was smoking hot and who wouldn't wanna flirt with her? But she wasn't complaining there. When Cosima saw that Delphine had waited for her after class, it made her hopes shoot sky-high again.

"I thought maybe I would walk you to class today, since you walked me to mine yesterday?" Delphine asked hesitantly.

"Like I'm going to say no to an act of chivalry from a beautiful lady," Cosima said happily, her tongue poking out from between her teeth as she grinned and giggled. Delphine giggled too and then surprised Cosima by reaching for her hand and linking their fingers together.

"Come," Delphine said. "Or else we'll be late again." Cosima had stopped giggling, but her smile was still plastered on her face and she nodded enthusiastically. As they walked, she felt Delphine's thumb brush lightly back and forth across her knuckles, and they were walking very close together… way closer than what would be considered casual friendly closeness, she realized.

"This is my stop," Cosima said, albeit a bit grudgingly, as they came to the door of her next-to-last class. She had last period gym with Delphine, but between chemistry and that, she had signed up to be part of the school newspaper. She figured it would look good on a college application, so she chose it as her elective.

"Ooohh, are you a… journaliste?" Delphine asked, seeming very interested.

"Dunno… haven't really been assigned a position yet. Kinda hoping for photographer or something. Ya know, artistic junk really impresses the ladies. More so than knowing the taxonomy of a sea cucumber anyway."

"Right… well feel free to show me your photos any time. Or just talk to me about holothuroidea. Surprise me." Delphine smiled, and Cosima was literally gaping at Delphine's usage of the scientific name for cucumber.

"You… YOU'RE A NERD TOO!" Cosima said accusingly, fake-glaring at her.

"Sshhh," Delphine winked at her. "It's our little secret. I have a reputation to maintain. What is it you said I was? A regulation hottie?"

"Yeah, but a nerd in disguise as a regulation hottie? As Tony would say… damn, girl! I mean, just sweep me off my feet already, why don't ya?" Cosima didn't mean for that to come out so blatantly… well, _smitten. _But Delphine blushed and her smile was nothing if not encouraging.

"I would, but my class starts in less than two minutes and I think I would need longer than that to… how did you put it? Sweep you off your feet?" Delphine's eyes were bright with mischief and Cosima swallowed thickly, both at her words and at that look. "I better go," Delphine continued. "See you in gymnasium?"

Cosima nodded, smiling at Delphine's use of the full word for gym. They kissed goodbye in the typical French way, just as they had before. But this time Cosima KNEW that it was held longer than necessary or appropriate, and she could have sworn she felt Delphine's nose nuzzle her cheek before she pulled away that last time.

She remained outside the classroom until right before the bell rang, both to get her breathing under control and to watch Delphine walk away. That was a bittersweet feeling, indeed. But the girl had some killer hips despite her lithe frame, and her walk only emphasized those curves more. _She belongs on a runway, _Cosima thought. _Or my bed_, the devil on her shoulder added afterwards. Cosima groaned inwardly and headed inside, hoping that gym would come as fast as possible.

_Oh god, Delphine in the locker room, _she thought suddenly. She started to feel guilty for imagining such things, but the angel on her other shoulder must have been out of the office or just agreed with the devil, because that guilt didn't last long at all. _Now I really can't wait for gym, _she chuckled to herself as she found her seat.


	4. Chapter 4

_(Authors Note: Yep, this chapter got posted super fast. Mainly because I had a full weekend off with no plans and also because you guys' feedback makes everything so much easier! So thank y'all and keep it coming. Hopefully I'll get the next chapter up before the week is out! Enjoy! 3)_

"Photographers…" Mr. Riggs said, "Cal Morrison and Cosima Niehaus. You two were the only ones who signed up for the position, oddly enough." He didn't sound very interested, but Mr. Riggs was really only there as a sort of chaperone. One of the actual students was the editor. Cosima just wished it were anyone other than that mega-bitch Rachel Duncan. "Alright, that's it. Everyone get with your groups and wait for your assignments."

Cosima joined Cal at a table in the back of the room. He was fiddling with a camera lens; his own, she realized. It looked really expensive. "Woah, dude… you must have shelled out a pretty penny for that thing. Do they make us buy our own shit?"

Cal smiled as he started to attach the lens to the camera itself. "Nah, they give us cameras. Pretty decent ones, too. Photography is just a hobby of mine so I have my own stuff anyway. And this lens is better for when you're working with a moving target… comes in handy at sporting events, which we'll be expected to cover A LOT."

"Are we the only photographers? It seems a rather small force to cover events for the entire school," Cosima asked.

"Oh no, there are three different newspaper classes. There should be photographers in them too. And they'll usually give the photographers in each class a different list of things to cover each week. Like maybe this week we'll get sports, and next week we'll get some academic meet or something like that. It usually works pretty well." Cal had finished with his camera and was inspecting it. "It's sexy, right?" He grinned and handed it to Cosima.

Cosima took it, but held it very cautiously. "I've never really done photography before. I mean… unless you count taking pictures with your phone at concerts and drunken selfies at parties. And my photo editing skills are pretty much limited to Instagram filters." She didn't like sounding nervous or unsure of herself. Luckily Cal didn't judge her.

"It's no big deal. You'll learn as you go. Actually… here!" Cal flipped open his notebook and wrote something down. "Go check out this YouTube channel. It's great for beginner photographers. It explains a lot about the different aspects of photography and even parts of a camera and stuff."

Cosima smiled. _Why is he so nice?! _"Thanks! Hey umm… you're in my chemistry class too, right?" Cosima wanted to broach the subject of Delphine… see if he was interested or if maybe Delphine had said anything about her to Cal. But she didn't want to be too obvious.

"Yeah, last period? You got partnered with Raj at the table next to me. I hope you're prepared for him to have a huge crush on you. The guy's wicked smart, but he's like puddy in women's hands. You could probably talk him into doing all the work if you wanted to, not that you'd need it or anything." Cal smiled in a way that he knew everyone was talking about her, giving her an appreciative nod.

"Raj is nice… I think we'll work well together. What about you? You got partnered with Delphine," Cosima started in. "Must feel pretty lucky, huh? Ya know… I hear all the guys are crazy about her."

Cal chuckled, but he looked a bit uncomfortable. "Well I'm sure I don't need to tell you that most guys go crazy over any sort of shiny new toy, right_?_ They see her as that sexy new French girl and sure, I've heard what they say too but mainly I just try to ignore it." He frowned and shook his head slightly. "I've actually known Delphine for a little while. She signed up for a penpal program when she found out her father was moving them over here, and we started writing each other. We became good friends and she's definitely a lot more than just some hot chick. She's pretty much a genius, actually. So yeah… I try to ignore what most of the guys say."

"Sounds like you really like her," Cosima said, both kind of jealous of their bond and admittedly a little touched by Cal's protectiveness. It was like the protectiveness she had felt when Scott told her all the guys were talking about Delphine. Apparently neither she nor Cal liked the idea of all these guys seeing Delphine as just some sexual object.

Cal laughed again, a happier laugh this time. "Well sure I like her. But… just as friends. I mean, she's a solid 10, don't get me wrong. It's not like I could have failed to notice. But we've really bonded as friends and the feeling is completely mutual. Besides, I've kind of got my eye on someone already." He paused for a minute, grinning a shit-eating sort of grin that for some reason reminded Cosima of Sarah. "And so does Delphine, I think."

Cosima hoped she didn't perk up too noticeably at that. But before she could continue the conversation, Rachel Duncan came over to their table and handed them each a packet. "Hello… Rachel Duncan," Rachel said, as if she needed to introduce herself. Cosima had never actually talked to her before, but the mere mention of her seemed to intimidate even the toughest jocks in school. Standing in front of her, well… Cosima now understood why. But as was her way, Cosima's instant mode of defense was sass and sarcasm.

"You sure are," Cosima said plainly. She heard Cal make a noise in the back of his throat, which was probably him trying to smother a laugh. Rachel seemed unphased.

"This packet will explain your duties as photographers for the paper and the grading criteria for the class itself. The back paper has your assignment for the first issue. I'm sure Cal would be happy to get you up to speed Cosima, seeing as you're new to the newspaper. Right, Cal?" Rachel turned her shark-like gaze on Cal, who seemed to be doing a damn good job of remaining unflustered.

"Yes sir! I mean… ma'am… Ms. Duncan?" Cal stammered. Apparently not so good a job after all. Cosima had to bite the inside of her cheek so hard, she almost bled, with the effort not to laugh. She didn't know if Cal did it on purpose to get a rise out of Rachel or if she was really just scaring the sense out of him. Rachel didn't seem to care, though. Her lips just twisted slightly to the side, her eyes narrowing.

"Rachel is just fine, Cal" she said calmly before walking to the next table. Cosima looked at Cal then and they both started shaking with silent laughter. They spent the rest of the period going over what they were required to do, and Cal explained some basic photography principles to her. Finally, they looked at their assignment.

"Looks like we've got sports this week after all," Cosima said. "Umm this obviously shows my lack of sportiness, but what sports are going on right now anyway? Besides football?"

"Right now it's mainly football and volleyball. There's also cross-country, and soccer will start pretty soon. But for this issue, it'll just be volleyball and football. The volleyball game starts at 4:30 on Friday, and then the football game is at 7:30. They're both home games luckily."

"Ah, okay. Guess I know what my plans are for Friday night," Cosima said. Then the bell rang and it was time for gym, which Cosima was equally nervous and excited about.

She was really glad to know that Cal and Delphine were just friends, but it didn't mean she wasn't worried about seeming too eager or, worse… like one of those pervy guys she loathed so much. Everything about Delphine intrigued her. She was drawn to her, not just her looks. But it didn't make the prospect of changing in the same room as Delphine any less nerve-racking or… she had to admit… sexy. _Oh man I am so in over my head on this one, _she thought as she headed toward the gym.

* * *

"CORMIER, HEAD IN THE GAME!" the coach shouted as Delphine hesitated behind the serving line.

"… oh! Oui! Sorry, coach!" Delphine flashed a shy smile up at Cosima before serving the ball and getting back into the practice game.

"Way to be inconspicuous, Niehaus," Cosima heard someone say. At first she thought her conscience had gained a physical voice, but then she turned around to see Beth Childs standing there, sweating and smirking.

"What do you mean?" Cosima feigned ignorance. They were on the track that went around the gym, a floor above the volleyball court. The girls playing volleyball were expected to practice during gym. Everyone else was either on the track or in the weight room for today.

"Oh come on, you think I was born yesterday? You're totally mackin' on Mademoiselle Sex on Legs over there. And she's DEFINITELY been mackin' on you. Won't be long before the whole school realizes it too, I'd wager. I'm for sure not the only one picking up the vibes between you guys. Everyone at the lunch table noticed," Beth chuckled and bent down to stretch.

"I guess you'd know about that from experience, right? What with you and Alison having a… thing for each other?" Cosima couldn't help herself. She knew Beth was needling her. Everyone knew how Beth was, including Beth. As far as Cosima knew, Beth LIKED being a bit of an asshole.

She also knew Beth had dated Paul for a while, and Alison had dated that Donnie guy, but they'd always seemed to spend more time with each other than either of the guys. The school had talked about it… enough that Cosima and her friends had even known. Beth didn't seem like the type to let it get to her, but Alison… well, Alison seemed a bit more concerned with people's opinions.

Beth threw her hands up in a gesture of surrender. "Hey there test tubes, no need to get testy. I wasn't saying it was a bad thing. As far as I can tell, you two would probably be like the school's own Destiel or Brittana. They'd ship it. Oh but if you tell anyone I know who Destiel or Brittana are, I'll kick your ass." She paused for a second before smirking and wriggling her eyebrows suggestively, "And yeah… I got a little bit of experience. Just don't tell Alison I admitted to that, either. Gay scouts honor? Or well… bi scouts… whatever label you wanna use." Cosima nodded and promised not to tell anyone.

"What are we promising?" Jennifer Fitzsimmons asked innocently as she jogged up to the pair, smiling a smile that Cosima was sure stole at least a dozen hearts before lunch every day.

"Oh, just queer things," Beth said, giving Cosima a wink. Cosima fought the urge to laugh nervously. _Why am I nervous? It's not like I'm in the closet._

"Oh," Jennifer blushed and giggled. "Well sorry for interrupting a bonding session. I'm going to finish this mile and see if the coach will let me hit the pool. See you gals later! Oh and Cosima… I would totally go for it if I were you," Then Jennifer winked and she was gone, curly ponytail flying behind her as she sprinted the last part of the lap, leaving a smirking Beth and a flabbergasted Cosima behind.

"I don't know where she gets all the energy to be such a beast in sports, but still manages to be a happy little fairy to everyone," Beth mused, shaking her head.

"I thought you were a beast in sports," Cosima said. Beth was one of the best forwards in the state to Cosima's knowledge.

"Nah, just in soccer," Beth said. "Jennifer does cross-country, softball, and she swims. She's freaking bionic or some shit. Anyway, I'm gonna finish my lap too. Check ya later, test tubes!" And then Beth was gone as well.

Cosima turned back to lean on the railing, watching Delphine with what she hoped looked like casual interest in the practice itself. Delphine moved around the court with an easy kind of grace, but also a very sharp focus. She was competitive, Cosima noticed. She'd never really been attracted to an athlete before. But Delphine's passion and dedication out there… she had to admit she found it insanely attractive. Plus Delphine looked sinfully good in volleyball shorts. _God bless whatever pervert created those,_ Cosima thought to herself with a grin.

And when Delphine jumped up, spiking the ball down onto the opposing side with impressive force, Cosima's stomach did some sort of weird flip. Delphine looked up at her then, smiling as she whisked a strand of hair that had escaped her ponytail back behind her ear. Cosima gave her a wink and shot her the hand sign for "okay." She saw, rather than heard Delphine giggle, but then decided to actually do some running before the coach figured out what was going on.

* * *

As Cosima pulled her gym shirt off over her head, she suddenly felt someone standing pretty close to her. She tugged it off the rest of the way and turned around to see Delphine standing there, leaning against one of the lockers and fiddling with the cap on her water bottle. Cosima was definitely grateful she'd worn one of her sexier bras that day: a deep burgundy pushup with black lace.

"Ça va?"Cosima said as nonchalantly as she could manage with Delphine standing there while she was practically in her underwear.

"Bien, et toi? Ça va?" Delphine smiled a breathtaking smile, the dimple in her cheek showing. Cosima was thinking just how much she wanted to kiss that dimple when she realized Delphine had actually asked her how she was.

"Oh… I'm… bien, too… I guess. Sorry, that was about the extent of my French besides 'Voulez-vous coucher avec moi?'" Cosima blushed deeply, realizing what she'd just said in French.

"A very useful phrase to know," Delphine said, trying to hold in her giggles. "Everyone should know Lady Marmalade."

"Right, totally agree!" Cosima said, reaching up to get her bag and skateboard down from on top of the locker before she even realized she hadn't put her shirt on yet. But as she came back down off her tiptoes, she noticed Delphine watching her…. no, not watching her… _checking her out_. Delphine's gaze had fallen to Cosima's stomach, and the way the muscles there flexed as she reached up to grab her things. Her heavy-lidded gaze was moving up to Cosima's chest before Cosima, completely thrilled and a bit cheeky, said anything. "You like my bra?"

"Quoi?" Delphine said, her teeth biting into her lower lip.

"My bra… is that what you're staring at? It's pretty cute, right?" Cosima knew she shouldn't push the girl, but it wasn't every day a girl like Delphine looked at her that way.

"Oui… I mean, non. I mean…" Delphine paused, shaking her head and trying to sort through her thoughts. "Yes, your bra is very cute. I like it. But I admit I wasn't looking at your bra. I just noticed… you have really nice… what do you Americans call them? Abs? Do you play sports?"

Cosima felt her cheeky grin growing wider and wider. _Oh she was SO checking me out! Better not be a dick about it._ "Yeah, we call them abs. And no… not officially, anyway. I work out sometimes and I skateboard pretty much nonstop. Oh… and thank you. For the compliment. It's not every day I have a beautiful girl telling me what a rockin' bod I have," Cosima couldn't resist poking her tongue out between her teeth then.

"That's surprising," Delphine said in a very sincere tone.

"What is?" Cosima asked as she pulled her shirt on over her head.

"That people don't compliment you," Delphine said. "You are really… something else. And I mean that in a good way. The best way." This made Cosima blush. Those words were more flattering than even Delphine's hungry gazes had been.

"Well… thank you," Cosima said quietly. It finally occurred to Cosima that everyone in the locker room had pretty much left. And they'd been openly flirting while everyone had been in there. _Oh God, Beth is right. Everyone is gonna know by lunch tomorrow that I'm crushing on her. _Now they were standing alone in that section of the locker room. "Umm… well, I guess I better leave you to get changed or whatever…" Cosima started to say.

"It's fine," Delphine said with a wave of her hand. "I don't have to change yet. There's still volleyball practice. I'm just taking a break while all of the girls who weren't in last period gym get here."

"Oh…" Cosima was confused. "Then… what are you doing back here? Sorry! Umm… don't mean to sound… however I sound. Just ignore me." _Jesus, Sarah's right! I'm such a spazz!_

"Why would I ignore you?" Delphine said, cocking her head to the side in a way that made her look like an adorable puppy. "Besides, you're right. I really didn't have any reason to be back here. Except…" she paused here, seeming unsure of herself. "I was wondering if you would like to come to the game this Friday night… the volleyball game, I mean… to watch me play? The football game is after and I have to cheer at that. But maybe we can see each other in between and then after the football game?"

Cosima couldn't believe it. Was she asking her out on a date? Whatever it was, Cosima was happy to be invited, and she had to be there for the newspaper anyway. "Yeah, I'd love to! I did promise I'd come watch you do your thing, right?"

"Magnifique!" Delphine said, bouncing happily, looking again very much like a puppy. Then she pulled Cosima into a hug and Cosima shockingly realized that this was the first time they'd been this close (as in … pressed up against each other) since their first meeting. They had pecked cheeks and held hands but she was now fully pressed against Delphine, and this time it was on purpose. _God, even sweaty she smells yummy. _

Cosima's arms slipped around Delphine's waist on their own, her head resting against Delphine's shoulder as if it was meant to be there. She heard a sigh and she couldn't tell if it was her or Delphine. Then she felt Delphine's face nestling against the top of her head, and Cosima knew it was her that sighed that time. Cosima was just starting to consider whether she should end the hug or try nuzzling into Delphine's neck when they heard a door slam and a cacophony of voices started to fill the locker room.

They both separated pretty quickly, but Delphine gave her a reassuring smile and a peck on the cheek before leaning up to retrieve her water bottle off the top of the lockers, much in the same way Cosima had reached for her things. It was Cosima's turn to do the checking out then, as Delphine's shirt rode up to reveal a taut stomach with… a navel piercing? _Holy watershed, and I thought bellybutton rings were way overrated! I've never been so happy to be so wrong._ Delphine gave her a wink as she turned around and strutted out of the locker room. Cosima then looked back at the locker and thought to herself, _I bet she could have reached that without all the stretching…_


	5. Chapter 5

The remainder of the week seemed to drag on forever. At least, in Cosima's mind it did. Her group had integrated quite nicely into the "in-crowd." They all sat together at lunch, and even Helena had managed to make friends. (Namely one guy named Jesse whom she'd started referring to as her boyfriend.) Cal had decided to sit closer to Cosima and Delphine at the table, but it was Sarah whom he held most of his conversations with.

Cosima and Delphine sat next to each other every day, talking about their lives and interests, and what they hoped to do in the future. It thrilled Cosima that Delphine also wanted to go into the sciences. Delphine was as bright as she was beautiful. Maybe even more so, and that was really saying something. They also started texting a lot, mostly just vague flirty messages and dorky conversations. By the time Friday rolled around, Cosima felt like she was vibrating with excited energy.

As soon as gym ended at 3:30 on Friday, she rushed to the newspaper classroom to collect her photography equipment. Cal had taught her a good bit just in the few days they'd been in class together, so she felt pretty confident. He would be at the games as well, so she figured if she screwed up (as in: payed too much attention to Delphine and not on being a photographer) then he would probably get the shots they needed.

There was still almost a full hour before the volleyball game started, but she wanted to get a good seat. (Was she even allowed to sit? Did photographers just roam around the court taking pictures the whole time? She wasn't sure. She'd better find Cal and ask.) When she re-entered the gym, things were already being set up for the game. She could smell the popcorn from the concession stand being made, and the ticket table was being set up. The people at the table just waved her on, since she was wearing her newspaper staff badge. She saw Cal and a few other kids from the newspaper standing around at the foot of the bleachers, so she headed over that way.

"Hey guys!" Cosima called out. They all turned to smile and wave as she approached. "Are we all supposed to sit together or what?"

"We have our own press table, actually. But you don't HAVE to sit at it," Cal explained. "I usually just walk around and try to get shots, myself. The booth is more for the reporters."

"Okay cool. I think I'll do that too," Cosima said. Then she heard the sound of a bunch of sneakers behind them. She turned to see the volleyball team pouring out of the locker room and headed to the court to stretch and warm up.

Delphine was in the middle of the group, looking as enticing as ever in her uniform, with her hair pulled up into a neat pony tail. Cosima loved that she didn't straighten her hair like so many girls did. She thought it would be a shame to hide all of those gorgeous golden curls. Delphine saw her almost immediately and smiled, looking over her shoulder (presumably to make sure the coach wasn't looking) before jogging over to where Cosima was.

"You're early," Delphine said as soon as she was in front of Cosima.

"Oh, well I'm sort of… ya know… here on official business and such," Cosima grinned and indicated her press badge.

"Ooohh I see," Delphine said as she reached out to touch it, running her thumb over its laminated surface. "So you're here on business and not pleasure?" Delphine smiled coyly, and Cosima's answering smile was just as mischievous.

"Ah you know… maybe a little bit of pleasure. I mean, hot, sweaty women in volleyball shorts. Who doesn't wanna see that?" She winked suggestively and then added, "Besides, sorta promised this really sexy French girl that I'd come watch her kick ass. If you see her, tell her I plan to get like… a dozen pictures of her doing her thing."

Delphine's cheeks flamed at Cosima's words, her eyes cast down at the floor for a few seconds before she looked up to meet Cosima's eyes again. "I'll tell her. But promise to make her look good?"

"It would be pretty much impossible for her to look any other way," Cosima said sincerely. Delphine smiled one of her thousand-watt smiles at that, and Cosima felt it tug at her heart strings.

"I better go warm up," Delphine said reluctantly as she began to back away. "I'll catch up with you after the game!" Then she blew a kiss at Cosima and Cosima had to swallow a sigh. She was still watching Delphine when she heard Cal clear his throat conspicuously.

"What?" Cosima almost snapped.

"Think you two could be a little more obvious about it?" Cal said as if he was exasperated, but he was smiling teasingly.

"Why I have no idea what you're talking about, good sir!" Cosima replied, grinning from ear to ear. Then she was busying herself with going over her camera again to make sure she remembered everything. By the time she was through, the gym was filling up pretty fast.

Her eyes seemed to be drawn to Delphine of their own free will and Cosima couldn't help but appreciate (yet again) how damn delicious Delphine looked in the volleyball shorts. She had to admit Delphine had a really, REALLY nice backside. The material hugged Delphine like a second skin, and Cosima stared for longer than was necessary at just how shapely Delphine's thighs and legs were. _I bet they'd look even better around me, _Cosima thought, and she had to bite back a groan at the images that filled her head.

When the game finally started, Cosima tried to follow Cal's lead. She wandered a bit, snapping pictures at different angles. She got some great serving shots, a few of the coaches, one of the girls in the huddle. She was even able to catch a killer snapshot of Delphine diving for the ball, which was her personal favorite. Plus their team, the Lions, won the match. And every time the announcer had called attention to Delphine, Cosima couldn't help but feel ridiculously proud.

"Way to go!" Cosima exclaimed as she approached Delphine after the game. She shot Delphine a thumbs-up that she hoped wasn't completely dorky.

"Merci, Cosima!" Delphine said, beaming at the smaller girl. "I have to go shower and change into my cheer uniform. But I have some time before I have to be at the football stadium. Would you like to… umm… _chill?" _Her smile turned a bit embarrassed as she stumbled around the American phrase. "There is supposed to be something called tailgating out in the parking lot before. Chad and Alison explained it to me, but it still sounds so odd. Perhaps you can wait for me out there?"

"Oh totes!" Cosima said, nodding enthusiastically. "Maybe I'll even show you some of the pictures I got of you… if you're like, REALLY nice to me." Cosima winked cheekily and Delphine tried her hardest to roll her eyes in dismissal, but she was giggling.

"I'll be sure to be on my best behavior," Delphine said in an attempt to be serious.

"Or worst. It depends on how ya look at it, ya know?" Cosima was in full cheeky mode. It seemed to get her favorite reactions out of Delphine, so she wasn't letting her foot off the gas just yet.

"Well that's a problem because I'm a _very _good girl," Delphine said deliberately, her voice noticeably lower than before. And then there was that look she gave Cosima. Part coy, part daring… Cosima had to suppress a shiver. But just as fast as she'd gone super seductive, Delphine was back to all sweet and innocent again. "Okay, well I'll see you out there in a few minutes!" Then Delphine was walking towards the locker room and Cosima was doing a happy dance on the inside as she headed out to the parking lot.

When she got out to the lot, she found that all of her friends were there. Cal had his truck parked and Tony had apparently gotten his dad's tiny work truck for the night as well. There were a few other cars and trucks pulling up around them already, and Aynsley was blaring music that was impressively loud to be coming from such a little sports car. Tony had the cooler sitting on his tailgate and some of the cheerleaders were starting to paint people's faces.

"Sup Cos?" Sarah said as soon as she caught sight of Cosima. But Sarah didn't really wait for a reply. She was too busy leaning into Cal, rather than against his truck. Cal didn't seem to mind, though. He looked pretty interested, actually. _Oh god, Sarah's going to chew him up and spit him out._

"Cosima!" Aynsley called out, seeming suspiciously happy to see her. "Your friends here were just saying how beastly you are on a skateboard. Care to show us while there's still a little light out?" Aynsley's face held all of the suspicious but none of the happy that her voice did. Cosima thought she looked like she was up to something, but a bunch of the people echoed Aynsley's enthusiasm, including some of her friends.

"Umm… I'm sorry, what?" Cosima asked. "You want me to skate for you guys? Just like… here in the parking lot?" Aynsley nodded, an even more suspicious grin spreading across her face.

"It's okay sestra," Helena said as she stepped up beside Aynsley. "I will skate too. It will be fun." Then Helena shot Aynsley a look and Cosima could have sworn she heard Helena growl under her breath. Whatever she did, Aynsley backed away quickly. Cosima had to admit that for someone whose social skills were usually somewhat lacking, Helena was a pretty good judge of character.

"Alright then. Let's do it," Cosima agreed hesitantly. She went over to Tony's truck to get one of his spare helmets from the back, and unlatched her skateboard from her backpack.

"Oi meathead, don't think you're getting on that board without a helmet!" Sarah called out to Helena. Cosima heard Helena grumble something but she put on her helmet… backwards. Helena always wore it that way and Cosima guessed no one had the heart to tell her it wasn't on right. It served the same purpose either way and was pretty amusing, so she didn't think it mattered much anyway.

Cosima was glad there was still some daylight left, although it was pretty limited. She could see that there were a few concrete ramps that led up from the parking lot to the sidewalk, and some rails by the steps. She could probably make a decent skating session out of just that. She didn't really like the idea of showing off for a bunch of random people anyway. But then Helena threw her board down and was off across the parking lot, shouting something in Ukrainian, and Cosima couldn't help but laugh and start off after her.

Sometimes it really surprised her how easy skateboarding came to her. So much of it was beautifully scientific… it was a lot of physics and geometry. Even as a person who wasn't particularly coordinated when it came to sports, Cosima was able to make the board do pretty much whatever she wanted it to. She was up one of the ramps before she knew it and picking up speed. Then she ollied up onto the handrails of the steps, boardsliding back down to the parking lot. As soon as she landed, she was pushing off again, gaining momentum. That was when she caught sight of Delphine.

Delphine had apparently joined her friends during the time Cosima had been skating, and now she was watching Cosima avidly. Cosima grinned and performed a kick-flip for good measure before heading to the curb. _I'm going to grind the shit out of this, _she thought. She had just popped up onto the curb, the tail of her board grinding along its surface when a car alarm started going off… very loudly and very close to her. Cosima didn't like to think of herself as easily startled but it scared the living crap out of her.

It happened very quickly. The sound made Cosima's body jolt in surprise. It wasn't much, but it was enough that her footing (and by extension, the board's grip on the curve) shifted and she went sprawling onto the pavement. It wasn't that bad of a wipeout. Darwin knows she'd had worse over the years. But there hadn't been people watching like that before. And definitely not someone like Delphine.

It seemed like everyone came rushing towards her. She started to get up fairly easily. She figured her knees and elbows would be badly bruised, but that was about it. She tried waving off everyone's worried looks, laughing and joking about "her own clumsiness." Then Helena said something.

"You… girl! Your name is Aynsley? I think you should be careful what key buttons you push, yes?" Everyone looked from Helena to Aynsley questioningly. Sure enough, it was Aynsley's car that had made the noise. And it was unlocked with the radio playing and everything. The only way it would have made that noise is if the alarm button had been pressed.

"Seriously Aynsley!" Alison shook her head, a scowl crossing her delicate features. "Cosima could have been seriously hurt. Helena's right. You need to be more careful." Then Alison was all mother hen, making sure Cosima wasn't seriously injured.

"I'm fine, Alison… no need to worry." Cosima said as she walked over toward Tony's truck. She leaned up against the side to inspect the damages. "Just some scrapes and bruises. Nothing I haven't had before. Hazards of the trade, y'know."

Alison crossed her arms over her chest. "Fine, be hard-headed! But you could have been seriously hurt!" Then she turned on heel to continue with the facepainting and tailgating.

"Are you really alright?" a soft voice said. Then Delphine was there, worried and lovely and Cosima decided that if she wanted one person to be worried about her, it was definitely Delphine.

"Aww yeah, I'm fine," Cosima replied. "Guess it was my turn to be the clumsy one."

"You are very good on your skateboard," Delphine said enthusiastically. "You're not clumsy. Aynsley is just… I think she pushed that button on purpose. I would really like to give her a piece of my mind." Cosima smiled then. Not her signature cheeky smile, but a genuine smile. She liked that Delphine was protective.

"Nah, don't worry about it. She'll get what's coming to her. Karma can be a bitch," Cosima then made a big show of eyeing Delphine up and down. "Nice outfit. You really rock the cheerleader look. I especially dig the ribbon in the hair." And it was true.

"Merci," Delphine said happily. "Would you like me to paint your face for the game?" Cosima had never really been big on school spirit but she couldn't think of anything better than having an excuse for Delphine to touch her, so she agreed eagerly. Delphine went to go get some face paint from Alison. It looked like Tony was getting a nose and whiskers drawn on him from a very happy Helena. And Felix was making a great show of creating a "masterpiece" of Sarah's face.

"D'accord! Sooo… what would you like? How about a… umm… a pawprint on one side of your face?" Delphine said as she rejoined Cosima.

"That sounds good to me!" Cosima smiled encouragingly as she took her helmet off. Then Delphine took Cosima's face in her hands, and Cosima could have sworn her heart skipped like five whole beats before it resumed a very not-so-slow pace.

"And would you like a player's number on the other side? I hear many people do this. Or so Alison says," Delphine said as she starting drawing the outline for a pawprint on Cosima's left cheek. Cosima shivered, but she didn't know if it was from Delphine's touch or the coolness of the paint.

"Umm… number 11," Cosima said. Delphine looked at her curiously. _Shit… that's her number… in volleyball! I don't even know who number 11 is on the football team!_

"I… I don't believe there is a number 11 on the football team," Delphine said. "I've seen the roster many times."

"Guess I'm more of a volleyball fan," Cosima said. She was about to curse herself for a fool, but the look Delphine gave her was beyond anything she could have hoped for. Delphine's eyelids fluttered, and a slow smile spread across her face. Her hands stopped moving, and her eyes were locked onto Cosima's.

"That's… I'm… _merde…" _Delphine closed her eyes and shook her head. Cosima had to bite her lip to keep from laughing because she was clearly having the same effect on Delphine that Delphine had on her. "You are… too sweet," Delphine said finally, her eyes opening again and finding Cosima's. Her hands resumed their work too, but the thumb of her hand that wasn't drawing started to brush idly along Cosima's chin.

"Nah, just honest," Cosima said a bit breathlessly. Then Delphine's thumb brushed along the outer edge of Cosima's lower lip, and Cosima couldn't help the shaky intake of breath that sounded suspiciously like a sigh. She wanted to kiss Delphine's thumb… that was her instinct. Hell, she wanted to kiss Delphine's _everything. _She wished there were some way to send that exact message to Delphine without having to form words.

"Honesty is very important," Delphine replied, her thumb showing no signs of leaving as it glided more fully along the curve of Cosima's lower lip and then finally up to the bow of her mouth. But her eyes were focused on filling in the pawprint.

"Tres important," Cosima agreed, and Delphine grinned. Just as she moved over to draw the number 11 on Cosima's other cheek, Alison was announcing that it was time for the cheerleaders to head to the stadium and set up. Delphine wasn't paying attention, though. She was finishing her number.

"Delphine! To the stadium… like, NOW!" Alison huffed. "You can flirt later!" Delphine blushed furiously at that.

"Hey," Cosima said softly as she gently grabbed Delphine's wrist. "It's okay. No need to be embarrassed or anything." She gave Delphine a reassuring smile, which Delphine returned after a few seconds.

"I'm not embarrassed, really," Delphine said honestly. "Just… surprised… with myself, I think. But it's a good surprised. There! All done. You are now my number one fan." Then Delphine was smiling brightly.

"Well I don't have a mirror or anything but I'm trusting you," Cosima grinned, thinking mainly of how Delphine said it was a good surprise. "Now get your butt over to the stadium before Alison goes all kinds of suburban crazy on you! I'll be there in a bit… cheering you on as you cheer on the team."

"Oui!" Delphine nodded and went to give Cosima a peck on the cheek, but realized she couldn't without smudging the paint. So she settled for giving her a kiss on the nose, which made Cosima giggle and she swore she blushed from her head to her toes. "I'll see you there!" Then Delphine was jogging off towards the stadium, and Cosima couldn't tear her eyes away.

"Damn, girl's got it bad," she heard Felix say. "I smelled lesbians a mile away."

"I'm not apologizing for my great taste in women, alright Felix?" Cosima said, grinning shamelessly.


	6. Chapter 6

(_Authors Note: A big thanks to user cophineheadcanxns on Tumblr for some of the dialogue ideas for this chapter! Thank you guys for continuing reading! There will be more to come soon. I'm just back in school now and working so finding time to write is more difficult. Still... I will update as regularly as I can. Keep the lovely feedback coming. It means the world to me!)_

"TOUCHDOOOOWWN LIONS!" the announcer roared into the microphone. It was late into the fourth quarter, and Chad had just completed a 30-yard touchdown pass to Paul to tie the game. It was up to the defense to hold the other team, the Eagles, so they could either have another shot at possession or go into overtime.

"Alright girls, let's go!" Alison called out. All of the cheerleaders moved into formation to do their touchdown dance. Cosima considered herself insanely lucky that Cal had been on the other end of the field to capture a shot of the touchdown because she was thoroughly enjoying watching Delphine dance. She tried to make it appear like casual interest in the cheerleading squad as a whole, but she was failing pretty miserably.

Luckily she wasn't failing so miserably at being a photographer. She'd gotten an interception shot earlier and a few other random ones. Including some awesome shots of the band and twirlers at halftime. The squad was really in sync and on-point. Cosima had always thought cheerleading was super cheesy, even if the girls (and guys) were pretty hot. She had to admit, though… she was beginning to have a newfound appreciation for the sport.

Mainly because seeing the way Delphine could move her hips when she danced was pretty much life-changing. About as life-changing as seeing her practically bend her body in half when she stretched into a backbend. It made Cosima and many of the football players (much to their coach's annoyance) stare unabashedly. She was pretty sure one of the guys even dropped his helmet along with his jaw.

"LET'S GO LIONS! YEAH!" the girls cheered as they finished their dance and did an assortment of kicks and jumps. Cosima smiled and snapped a few pictures of the cheerleaders. She went to snap one of Delphine but all of a sudden Delphine was running… fast. And then she threw herself outward, doing a round-off into a back handspring and then a full backflip. Cosima didn't know why she was so impressed and enamored by the tricks. She'd seen cheerleaders do stunts and stuff before. But Delphine was something else.

Once Delphine recovered from her very clean landing, she put a hand on her hip, cocking that hip to the side in a flirty manner and flashing a grin Cosima's way. Cosima took that opportunity and snapped a picture. She sent Delphine a wink, which Delphine returned automatically with a little shimmy of her shoulders. _And people say I'M cheeky, _Cosima thought with a smile.

"JESUS MURPHY, CONTROL YOUR HORMONES CORMIER! WE'RE IN BETWEEN STUNT SETS!" Alison snapped none-too-quietly from a little ways away. "AND YOU TOO, COSIMA! Save it for after the game!" Both girls giggled nervously and sent Alison only halfway apologetic smiles.

As the cheerleaders set up for the next stunt, Cosima turned to watch the game. The Eagles were set to run their first play of what could be the last drive of the game. She readied her camera just in case anything was to happen.

Within what seemed like a mere fraction of a second after the center hiked the ball into the quarterback's hands, Art had busted through their offensive line, slamming hard into the quarterback and forcing a fumble. For delivering such a hard hit, Art recovered quickly and scrambled to his feet, scooping up the ball in the process and taking off towards the end-zone. Art wasn't just strong… he was also pretty damn fast. He scored easily.

Cosima thought she must have a lucky trigger finger or something, because she started snapping as soon as Art and the quarterback made impact, and didn't stop until Art had started running down the field. He was running in the direction of Cal, so Cal was able to get the shot of him making the score. With that touchdown, the Lions went ahead and won the game 35 to 28.

Needless to say, everyone was in an awesome mood as the game ended. As the football players started to head off the field, congregating with basically everyone else on the way out, Chad yelled, "Victory party at my place!" This was met with numerous shout of approval from just about everyone.

"YEAAHHH PARTY!" Sarah said as she and Felix met up with Cosima. Then Sarah looked at Cal, who'd just swung his camera bag over his shoulder and started to walk with Cosima toward the parking lot. Even Cosima didn't fail to notice how nice Cal's arms looked in the tight shirt he was wearing, so she knew Sarah was totally checking him out. "You gonna check it out too, lumberjack?" Sarah flirted shamelessly.

Cal grinned and reached up to scratch the scruff on his chin, as if emphasizing his ruggedness for Sarah's benefit. "Well… it seems as if I'd be in charming company, so why not?" Sarah seemed to really like that answer, purposely bumping into Cal as they walked.

"Alright steamy potatoes, cool it now!" Felix chided playfully. "Ugh, so much heterosexuality!"

Cosima was busy giggling and fake-gagging with Felix when Delphine walked by. "See you at Chad's, Cosima?" she asked in what sounded like a hopeful tone.

"Oh totes… wouldn't miss it! Just gotta let the 'rentals know. But they're pretty laid back about this sorta thing. They're usually just happy when I get out and have a social life instead of staying in and geeking out over science stuff 24/7."

"Magnifique!" Delphine exclaimed. She looked at the rest of the group, as if realizing that she'd been ignoring if they were coming too. "Looking forward to seeing all of you there!" Then she was walking away hurriedly towards her car.

"Yeah I'm sure she's just thrilled that we'll all be there twat-swattin' her," Sarah drawled lazily. It came out snarky, but Sarah was smiling a good-natured smile. "Only joking. You won't see any clitorference from me. I'll be busy... hell, maybe we'll both get laid!" Sarah laughed and her eyes drifted towards Cal, who was busy unlocking his truck. Tony chose that moment to show up, followed by Helena, Scott, and Katja.

"Okay, so who's riding with me?" Tony said. "I can only fit two…"

"I can take whoever's left," Cal volunteered. "I have plenty of room."

"Meathead and I will ride with Cal," Sarah said automatically.

"Scott and I can ride vith Cal too. Zat cool, Scott?" Katja looked to Scott for approval. Scott just nodded happily.

"Guess that leaves me and Cos with wolfman here," Felix said, looking at Tony.

"That's Mr. Wolfman to you, bitch," Tony growled playfully. Then he hopped up in his truck, unlocking the other door for Cosima and Felix to climb inside. "You guys checked with your folks yet?"

"I guess I better be the one to let Mrs. S know," Felix said. "Lord knows Sarah won't do it."

"I'm calling mine right now," Cosima said as she dialed her mom's number. "Hey mama!"

"Heya pickney. You need one of us to come get you? You know we don't like you skating after dark."

"No, it's cool. Tony is giving me a ride. I was actually just asking if you'd mind me staying out a little later. There's a victory party at the quarterback's house and everyone's going."

"A party at a football player's house? Well that's… new," Briona said, obviously a bit taken aback.

"Tell her to go and not come back without a wild story to tell! All of my coworkers talk about their kids getting into trouble and I wanna one-up them for once!" Cosima heard her dad yell in the background.

"Did you hear that?" her mom asked.

"Yup. So should I come in really late, bruised and wasted, or just not come back until tomorrow sometime, wearing clothes that aren't mine?"

"Well it's Friday night. So let's try… back before 4 am and no intoxicated driving OR skating! Get someone you trust to bring you home. All other details are up to you. Be smart and have fun, love!"

"Always am and always do! Love you guys," Cosima said, smiling happily.

"We love you too. Now go make your father fake-ashamed of you," Briona said, and then they hung up.

"You have the coolest parents ever, dreads," Tony said.

"Seriously… can they adopt all of us?" Felix agreed. "But Mrs. S is fine with Sarah, Helena, and me going to the party. Just wants me to keep an eye on the two of them. There's something wrong in the world when I am looked to to be the responsible person in a group."

"I'll say," Tony said. Felix made a face, but they laughed.

The rest of the ride was pleasant, and they found the place easily, mainly by just following the line of cars leaving the stadium parking lot. Cosima was thankful that she'd worn a cute outfit that day: a burgundy, black and white Aztec-printed skirt with a low-cut burgundy sweater over a black tank top. Add some black tights and her mom's necklace and she was looking pretty damn appealing.

"Alright, you guys ready?" Tony said as he parked the drunk along the street leading up to Chad's place.

"Parties are my natural habitat," Felix replied as he hopped out of the truck, letting Cosima out as well.

"Born ready," Cosima agreed. "Let's go!"

The party was already getting into full-swing when they walked in. There was loud music, shouting, drinking, beer pong… some guys shouting profanities as they played Mario Kart. Chad had a really big, really _nice _place.

"Oi, Cos!" Sarah called out, running up to Cosima and slinging an arm around her shoulder. "We beat ya! But we've only been here a few minutes. Want a beer?" Sarah had clearly wasted no time. She was already finishing up her cup.

"Sure, I'll have one. I'd actually kill for a joint right now, though. Felix, wanna go for a smoke real quick?"

"Thank God, I thought you'd never ask! I'm gonna need some Vitamin M to survive all of this American Pie shite." He pulled Cosima toward the back where some sliding glass doors were and they went out into Chad's (again, very large) back yard. It seemed like most of the crowd was out there. There was also a pool and a hot tub, which people seemed to be taking advantage of. It was only early September after all and still nice enough to swim.

"Fuck! If I'd have known, I would have brought my swimsuit," Felix said sourly. "It's been so long since I've been in a proper hot tub."

"No one wants to see you in your speedo, Felix," Cosima teased.

"Speak for yourself, Miss Tasteful One-Piece," Felix teased back. They leaned up against the edge of the house and Felix pulled out a joint and a lighter. He lit it up and took a lengthy hit before passing it to Cosima. She couldn't keep a blissful smile from her face as she inhaled, feeling the familiar sensation spread into her throat and lungs. Her eyes also fluttered shut, and when she went to exhale, she let them flutter back open.

That was when she saw Delphine walking towards her, clad only in a bikini, and Cosima thought her heart stopped. She started choking on the last bit of smoke, and Felix had to smack her on the back. When she was able to get a hold of herself, she looked up to see Delphine standing in front of her, a very concerned expression on her face.

"Bonsoir Cosima. Are you alright?" she asked.

"Oh she's fine, Frenchie. Your leggy entrance just took her breath away. Literally," Felix said matter-of-factly. Cosima managed to glare at him as she wiped her watery eyes. He responded by plucking the joint from her hand and taking a deliberately big drag.

"I'm okay," Cosima said breathlessly. "Just… choked, I guess. Not something that normally happens when I smoke, but whatevs." Felix cleared his throat, probably to tell her to stop rambling. "You look… wow! I mean, I know that's so clichéd and in just about every angsty teen chick flick there is, but… yeah. You look amazing, Delphine."

"Merci Cosima," Delphine said, blushing with obvious pleasure at the compliment. "I was going to get in the hot tub. Would you like to… umm… join me?" It was a delicate question to ask. You didn't normally ask someone to "join you in the hot tub" unless you meant it in a sexy kind of way.

Cosima couldn't think of anything she'd rather do than join Delphine in the hot tub. There were only two problems. First of all, she didn't have a swimsuit. Secondly (and actually the only REAL problem) was that there were other people there and a lot of them were horny teenage dudes.

"I'd love to, but I actually didn't bring a swimsuit or anything…" Her heart jumped a little bit at the look of disappointment on Delphine's face. _She really wants to get in the hot tub with ME! Me of all people! _Cosima thought to herself. "But I'll get us some drinks and I can sit by the edge or something?" Delphine perked up at this, nodding happily.

"Oui! C'est bien!" Delphine said before pecking Cosima's cheek and heading over to the hot tub. Cosima watched her as she went, inwardly groaning at the sight.

"I may be gay, but even I have to say that I totally get it. If you don't jump on that, I might begin to doubt your intelligence," Felix muttered as he passed the joint back to Cosima. "Now let's finish this joint so I can go get trashed and you can go get laid." Cosima was in no mood to argue with him.

* * *

"Hey you guys! We're starting a game of 'Never Have I Ever' inside. If any of you wanna play, come on!" Sarah Stubbs called from the doorway. A bunch of people in the hot tub looked at each other thoughtfully before hopping out. Delphine looked toward Cosima.

"Should we go?" Delphine asked. "That's the game where you drink if you've done the thing, right?"

"Right," Cosima said, smiling. "I think we should… it could get interesting. You never know what your peers will admit to when they're wasted."

"Okay, then let's go!" Delphine said, pulling herself out of the hot tub. Cosima didn't even bother to hide her hungry gaze. She watched the way Delphine's shoulders flexed as she pulled herself up, the way the water droplets slid down along her skin, into the valley between her breasts or across the defined expanse of her stomach where Cosima again took notice of Delphine's navel piercing.

She handed Delphine a towel, which Delphine took graciously and dried off before wrapping it around her shoulders. Once they got inside, the game was just starting. Cosima went to grab them a couple of drinks… wine, instead of beer… and they sat down in the circle. The game was moving counterclockwise, and people were keeping it pretty chaste so far.

"Never have I ever… hit a dog with my car," Scott said sheepishly.

"Well someone better get Childs a whole 30-pack because she fucking aims for them!" Art called out across the circle.

"That was one time, dipshit!" Beth yelled back, taking one drink… then two… then three of her beer. Alison gasped and everyone got a kick out of that.

"I'm a bit cold," Delphine whispered quietly.

"Well maybe you should have put some clothes back on before coming inside, dummy," Cosima teased lightly even as she scooted closer to Delphine. She reached back to the couch and pulled at the blanket that was somehow still neatly folded there, bringing it to wrap loosely around herself and Delhine. "Here… this is better."

"Much," Delphine said, nibbling lightly at her lower lip. She tried to be casual about stealing glances at Cosima, but Cosima noticed… Cosima was trying to steal her own glances. This went on for a while as the game played on. The questions kept on getting more interesting, and as they kept on getting more intoxicated, their glances became not as subtle. Before they knew it, they were giggling and bumping the other's shoulders playfully with their own. This didn't go unnoticed by Sarah, who was sitting to the left of Delphine.

"Never have I ever had a crush on a blonde cheerleader or the president of the science club!" Sarah said rather loudly. Cosima glared pointedly at Sarah, who was grinning like a fool and just shrugged. Everyone knew Cosima was president of the science club. And while there was more than one blonde cheerleader, it was pretty obvious to everyone in the room what Sarah meant.

"Well babe, you're blonde!" Chad said to Aynsley before taking a swing of his drink. "And I guess I've sorta got a crush on you." Everyone chuckled, but then their gazes made their way back over to Cosima and Delphine.

_I hate you so much right now, Sarah_.

Cosima looked at Delphine and Delphine looked at her, smiling a bit shyly. For a few seconds, Cosima thought Delphine was just going to blush and shrug it off. But then Delphine reached for her cup. Cosima felt herself get very warm all of a sudden and on impulse she reached for her cup as well, and then they both took a drink, still holding each other's gaze.

_Okay, maybe I don't hate you that much, Sarah._

"Alright Delphine, your turn," Sarah said with a very satisfied smirk on her face.

"Oh merde! Ummm… Never have I ever…" Delphine's brow furrowed adorably as she tried to think of something to say. "Never have I ever… kissed someone of the same sex."

There were quite a few chuckles at that. Partly from seeing the people who were drinking, and because it was Delphine who'd said it while she had been flirting nonstop with Cosima for the past week. Cosima giggled herself and then took a healthy gulp from her drink, shooting a flirty glance at Delphine in the process. Then she realized it was her turn, and maybe it was the alcohol, but she suddenly felt very brave.

"Never have I ever wanted to kiss the person sitting to my right," she said evenly. There was some muttering going on around her, but whether it was due to people seeing who was beside them or in reaction to what was basically her challenging Delphine, she didn't know. Cosima wasn't paying them any attention. All she cared about was Delphine's reaction.

Delphine was watching her too. She sucked in a shaky breath through her nose, her nostrils flaring slightly. Her eyes fluttered and flicked down to Cosima's mouth and then back up to her eyes. Then, without turning her head or looking away, she reached for her cup and brought it to her lips, mimicking Cosima's flirty glance as she took a sizeable drink.

Cosima felt that warmth all over her body again, but this time it was stronger and far longer lasting. A cocky smile played about her lips as she felt Delphine scoot even closer beneath the blanket, her side pressing into Cosima's. Cosima slipped her arm around Delphine's waist, delighted both at the softness of the skin under her fingers and at the shiver she elicited from Delphine that she knew had nothing to do with her being cold.

"Oh come on, get a room you two!" Aynsley said.

"Yes, please… and take video!" Chad laughed, ignoring Aynsley's slap at his crudeness.

"Yeah, the video would probably be hella enlightening, since Chad no doubt needs tons of pointers on his technique," Beth said, giving Chad a look that could wither flowers in springtime.

"I'm actually going to go out for a smoke," Delphine said, her fingers lacing through Cosima's and giving her hand a squeeze.

"Me too," Cosima said after a few beats, trying not to seem too obvious or eager to get away from the group of people. There was some muttering and snickering as they got up and started walking away, but Cosima looked back and saw quite a few people smiling in her direction and a few gave her thumbs up. She just shook her head and laughed quietly to herself as they stepped outside.

"Well that was… interesting," she said. "Oh and umm… I don't smoke. Cigarettes, anyway. Just pot for me."

"Neither do I. Well, I did. But I quit. Not very smart for an athlete to smoke, plus my parents caught me," Delphine said, toying with the towel around her shoulders. Hardly anyone was outside anymore. Most of the people had either gone inside or gone home. "Are you sure you don't want to get in the hot tub?"

"You're just trying to see me in my underwear, aren't you?" Cosima winked and bit her own lip for once.

"Oui," Delphine said honestly, blushing and smiling her own version of Cosima's cheeky smile. "But only if you want to."

Cosima had to admit that she really, really wanted to. "Okay, but turn around." Delphine looked confused for a second. "You may be seeing me in my underwear, but it's basically the same as a bikini. If you see me stripping, that's a whole other level. Strip teases are like at least third-date level stuff." Delphine rolled her eyes, biting the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling. But she did as Cosima said.

With each item of clothing Cosima took off, she felt her breathing getting more and more unsteady. First she was kicking off her shoes, then she was pulling her sweater and tank top over her head, and finally she was shimmying out of her skirt and tights. By that time, she was pretty sure she was going to hyperventilate.

"Okay," she said, sucking in a steadying breath. "You can turn around now."

Delphine turned around slowly, her eyes still on the ground as if she was readying herself to look at Cosima. Cosima couldn't hold back her smile. She remembered the first time she'd been attracted to a girl… she figured Delphine was feeling the same way she had felt then. Delphine raised her eyes, her gaze searing into Cosima's skin as it traveled from her toes all the way up to her face. The look Delphine gave her when their eyes met made the butterflies in Cosima's stomach go absolutely crazy.

"So are we just gonna stand here or get in the hot tub?" Cosima managed to say, making Delphine grin.

"Après vous," Delphine said back.

"Yes ma'am!" Cosima said, saluting Delphine dorkily before jumping into the water. She heard Delphine giggle and then there was a splash right next to her. She turned around to face Delphine, who was wiping water off her face. Their height difference was even more obvious now. The hot tub was between 4 and 5 feet deep. Cosima wasn't the tallest of girls. The water came up to her shoulders, but it barely even got the tips of Delphine's hair wet.

"So…" Cosima started off. "You've never kissed a girl before? Even as practice or in truth or dare or anything?"

"Non," Delphine said, shaking her head. "I've never really wanted to, either. Until now… until you."

"Well damn, you know just what to say, don't you? Typical romantic French woman…" Cosima said, only half teasing.

"Oui, but I guess you would know… typical cheeky American," Delphine teased back.

"Mmhmm," Cosima murmured, her brain shifting from conversation mode into something entirely different as she pressed closer to Delphine. She reached a hand up to Delphine's shoulder, bobbing on her toes and leaning up so that her lips were just a breath away from Delphine's. Delphine's eyes fluttered shut, expecting her kiss. But Cosima didn't move.

"Cosima," Delphine whispered, her hand coming up from the water to find Cosima's neck, her thumb running along the underside of Cosima's jaw. "S'il te plait… embrasse moi."

Cosima didn't speak French, but she knew exactly what Delphine was saying. Still, something inside of her really wanted Delphine to make the first move… to be the one to close the distance between their lips. And yet, Delphine's mouth was so bloody perfect and it was so close… she settled for something in between… something she was pretty sure would give both of them what they wanted.

She leaned in and lightly brushed her lips back and forth against Delphine's, her own lips parting and breathing the other girl in. Delphine's lips parted in response, searching for more of Cosima's mouth as she sighed.

"Make me," Cosima breathed against her lips, her voice pitched low and sensual. Then she punctuated it with a brief flick of her tongue between Delphine's lips, and Delphine's shyness completely evaporated. Cosima felt Delphine's fingers dig slightly into her neck as she pulled her up and in, Delphine's mouth finding Cosima's with a hungry moan.

Cosima smiled against her lips and slid her arms around Delphine's neck, pressing flush against Delphine and letting herself melt into the kiss. For all of her hesitation seconds before, now Delphine was kissing without restraint. Her lips were softer than any Cosima could ever remember kissing, and she tasted like a mixture of wine and something completely distinctive. Whatever it was, it was insanely good and Cosima didn't think she would ever get enough of it.

Delphine was a superb kisser. Her tongue dipped past Cosima's teeth and slid against Cosima's, tasting and exploring Cosima's mouth before drawing Cosima's tongue into her own. Cosima shivered as she thought of other things Delphine's tongue would be great at. She pushed against Delphine, pressing her back against the wall of the hot tub. She sucked hungrily at Delphine's lips and tongue, only stopping to give Delphine's lower lip a sharp little tug between her teeth, which made Delphine gasp and squirm against her.

One of Cosima's legs slid between Delphine's, her thigh pressing in intimately as she rocked her hips forward slightly. Delphine's answering groan was like music to Cosima's ears. Delphine hiked one leg up around Cosima's waist, rolling her hips to meet Cosima's movements. Cosima slid her hand along Delphine's thigh, marveling at the gorgeous mix of silky skin and muscle underneath.

Suddenly Cosima broke from Delphine's lips to press a hot, open-mouthed kiss to the pulsepoint at the base of her throat. Then she dragged her tongue up along the girl's neck and she thought nothing could be sexier than Delphine with her head thrown back, moaning as she thrust against Cosima's thigh.

As Cosima's tongue reached Delphine's upper neck, she felt Delphine's hand in her dreads, tugging her head back. Then Delphine was looking at her for a second, and the look written on her face was undeniable. It was pure, uncensored desire. Her mouth slammed back against Cosima's, their tongues tangling in a way that Cosima was sure would be pretty lewd and pornographic if anyone could see them. But she didn't care. The only thing that existed in that moment was Delphine and the intense throbbing between her legs.

"Fuck," Cosima groaned, which turned into a gasp as Delphine's fingers scraped down her back. Delphine's mouth caught around her earlobe and suckled, making Cosima's eyes roll back and her hips roll forward, her head tilting to the side to give Delphine better access to her neck and shoulder. They really should go somewhere else… someone could see them at any moment. "We should… can we…" she tried.

Delphine's answer was a sound that sounded a lot like "yes," but halfway between a moan and a hiss. Cosima didn't even think Delphine knew exactly what she was asking, but when Delphine's teeth bit down in the crook between her neck and shoulder, Cosima didn't remember what she was asking either. Everything about Delphine just felt so damn good, and anything that made her stop touching Delphine for even a second seemed completely unappealing. She had almost entirely forgotten that they were in a semi-public place when she heard Tony.

"INCOMING CLITORFERENCE!" he yelled.

Cosima's head lifted none-too-quickly, but her words were quick. "What the fuck?!" she snapped.

"A herd of drunken football players are headed to the pool! I'd abort sexy times, if I were you," he called out. The groan that fell from Cosima's lips then held absolutely no pleasure. Nor did Delphine's. "Though I hate to break up something so damn sexy. You go dreads!" Tony continued, to which Cosima gave him a playful middle finger.

"Well shit… maybe we should jump in the pool too. The cold water might help," Cosima cracked, and Delphine giggled softly, though her eyes were still burning with pent-up desire.

"SKINNY DIPPING!" Chad screamed as he streaked from the house and dove head-first into the pool, followed by a bunch of other guys.

"Never mind," Cosima said, "Seeing Donnie Hendrix naked is enough to cool me down. Plus I have no intention of getting in the pool with them. Come on, let's go!" She pulled herself out of the pool and reached for Delphine's hand.

"Where are we going?" Delphine asked curiously.

"Back inside I guess. Anywhere we don't have to look at a bunch of shriveled dude junk," she said as she settled the towel around Delphine's shoulders. Then she reached down to pick up her clothes. "And hopefully…" she pulled Delphine close as they walked, "We can find somewhere to be alone."


	7. Chapter 7

"Where the hell is everyone?" Cosima asked loudly as they reentered the house. Delphine was huddled closely to her, their fingers laced.

"Well besides those so-called 'straight boys' who are all out there skinny dipping together… I think everyone else has either left or has snuck off for some alone time. It's almost 3 am anyway," Tony said as he came in right behind them, looking at his watch.

"Holy watershed! 3 am?! I have to be home by 4!" Cosima panicked, dropping her clothes and pressing a worried hand to her forehead. Sarah chose that moment to stumble none-too-quietly out from one of the coat closets. She was trying to adjust her hair and her shirt while Cal was leaning against the doorjamb looking very rumpled and out of breath.

"Fuck, I owe Felix twenty bucks now," Tony slurred, looking a bit unsteady on his feet. He then promptly plopped down on the couch, burping loudly as he reached for a beer sitting on the coffee table. The alcohol (and whatever else he'd consumed) was finally catching up to him.

"Well I can already tell by looking at you that you're in no shape to drive me home," Cosima said as she scowled at Tony, hands on her hips. "Maybe Felix will be able to drive you in YOUR truck… if and when he ever turns up."

"I can drive you," Delphine finally spoke up. Cosima turned to look at her, a smile tugging at her lips. Delphine was just standing there awkwardly, damp and shivering with the towel still around her shoulders. Still, Cosima thought she'd never seen anyone as beautiful. Had she really just been making out with this girl?

"Are you sure? I don't want to like… inconvenience you or anything."

"Judging from what I saw out in the hot tub, I doubt anything that lets the two of you be alone together could be viewed as 'inconvenient,' dreads," Tony cracked dryly. Cosima glared at him. She didn't know why she was finding him annoying at the moment, but it probably had something to do with her having the female version of blue balls.

"It wouldn't be inconvenient," Delphine reassured her, reaching out to take Cosima's hand again. "I wouldn't offer if I didn't want to help. But maybe we could get into some clothes that are… less wet and cold before we leave?"

Cosima giggled and squeezed Delphine's hand. "Yeah, that sounds good. I'll just go change in the bathroom real quick."

Granted, she didn't really have anything to change into. She just took off her undergarments and put the rest of her clothes back on. When she came back out, Delphine was waiting on one of the couches in some cut-off jean shorts and a tank top. She looked amazing, but Cosima didn't think that outfit was particularly warm looking.

"You're not cold in those?" she asked as they walked out to Delphine's car, stopping along the way to get Cosima's things out of the back of Tony's truck.

"Non, once I got out of the wet clothes I was fine. It's much warmer here this time of year than it is in France, actually." Delphine smiled and opened the door for Cosima.

"Merci," Cosima said gratefully, with a teasing grin. Then she leaned up to press a soft kiss to Delphine's lips. Delphine responded with a blissful sigh and stroked a hand along Cosima's hip.

"Avec plaisir," Delphine murmured against Cosima's mouth.

"Mmm, yeah… definitely," Cosima practically purred before giving Delphine one more lingering kiss and hopping into the passenger's seat. To Cosima's pleasure, she saw Delphine draw in a steadying breath and shake her head before shutting the door and walking around to the driver's side.

"So where am I going?" Delphine asked once she started the car. "You can type your address in the GPS if you'd like. I still have trouble figuring it out."

"Okay, I'll try and work my magic here," Cosima said. She started fiddling with the navigation system and after a couple of minutes, managed to have her address typed in as the destination. "Voila!"

"Show off," Delphine muttered with a smirk. "And if you're going to keep speaking French around me, we will have to work on your accent."

"Unless you plan on teaching me, you've heard about the extent of my French. I take German," Cosima admitted. She had to laugh at the exaggerated expression of horror on Delphine's face.

"German?! Merde, you are the enemy!"

"Vielleicht. Aber eine heiße feind," Cosima replied, loving the skeptical look Delphine was giving her. "I said 'Maybe. But a hot enemy.'"

"Hmm… c'est vrai," Delphine mused.

"Do you normally make out with your enemies?"

"Only if they're hot," Delphine said with a sideways glance and a wink. Cosima felt herself blush. She'd only made that comment as a joke. Delphine was easily the most beautiful girl Cosima had ever known and to have her say that she was hot was beyond awesome.

"Thank you," Cosima said quietly. "I think you're like… insanely gorgeous. In case you hadn't already guessed." She wasn't normally so shy about flirting. Hell, she'd been ON POINT in the hot tub. But they were in the heat of the moment then and for some reason actually expressing feelings was a lot different.

Delphine must have sensed her shyness, because she reached out to take Cosima's hand in her own, bringing it up to her lips. "I had an idea, but hearing you say it is even better," Delphine said comfortingly and with a sincerity that added an extra punch to the butterflies currently swarming in Cosima's gut. Then Delphine started playing with her fingers in her lap, which probably wasn't the best idea since she was driving. But Cosima didn't want her to ever let go.

Along the way to her house, Cosima let herself study Delphine openly for the first time, without worrying about getting caught or other people watching. The streetlights of the city were especially bright, illuminating Delphine's face for Cosima's gaze. She was so lovely. Cosima couldn't even begin to describe the exact color of her eyes. They were a breathtaking mix of green and brown that ended up looking exquisitely golden. Those eyes with her golden blonde ringlets and achingly perfect bone structure… not to mention a sinfully gorgeous mouth… Cosima heard herself sigh. This woman was going to be the death of her.

"That's not fair, you know," Delphine said suddenly, smiling.

"What's not fair?" Cosima asked dreamily.

"Looking at me like that when I can't look back at you," Delphine explained.

"Can't help it," Cosima said unapologetically. "You're beautiful and I like looking."

Delphine blushed and flicked her gaze towards Cosima for a second. "Merci. But so are you and so do I. That's why it's unfair."

Cosima grinned, brushing her thumb against Delphine's wrist. "Luckily we're almost to my house, and we should make it with a few minutes to spare."

They did, in fact, make it to Cosima's house very soon. It was 3:45 when they pulled up.

"Welcome to casa de Niehaus," Cosima said. "Or at least to the driveway de Niehaus."

Delphine giggled and unbuckled her seatbelt, looking at Cosima the way Cosima had been looking at her before. Cosima felt a shiver run down her spine and it was a very, VERY good kind of shiver.

"Okay, now I totally get why you thought it was unfair," Cosima whispered. Delphine nodded and reached up, brushing her fingertips against Cosima's cheek. Cosima leaned into that touch, her eyelids fluttering. Then Delphine was leaning in slowly, and Cosima was moving towards her as well, and their lips met.

This kiss was different than the one before. Still hot, but the intent was slightly different. This kiss was sweet and exploring… almost tentative. Cosima whimpered, slipping her hands into Delphine's thick curls. Delphine hummed into Cosima's mouth in return, a soft noise that sounded a lot like "Mmmm."

"Kissing you is…" Delphine murmured as she broke the kiss, looking lovingly at Cosima as she ran her thumb along the curve of Cosima's lower lip, "so different."

"Yeah?" Cosima said, giving Delphine's thumb a tender kiss. Then she pulled Delphine's mouth back to hers again, her tongue dipping past the other girl's teeth and flicking up to trace along the roof of her mouth before pulling back again, but only by a little bit. "Good different?" she asked, smirking.

That smirk only lasted a split-second because then Delphine's mouth was there again, kissing her fervently. "_Sooo _good," Delphine breathed against her lips in a husky voice, making Cosima's skin flush and prickle with heat.

Cosima had to get inside, she knew that. She didn't know if her parents had waited up for her or not, or if they'd already gone to bed. She considered asking Delphine to come in with her, just in case they had gone to bed. Thinking of that made her groan. There was no way they could be quiet. Both sneaking into the house and if/once they got to her bedroom. Then there would be the next day to deal with. Plus, if she was being honest with herself, she really wanted to do it right with Delphine… not just have some hookup after a party.

"I…" Cosima started to say, forcing herself to pull away from Delphine's luscious mouth. But then that mouth was finding its way down her neck, and Cosima let out a breathy sigh. She tried again. "I… I need to get inside. But just so you know I really, REALLY don't want to."

Delphine looked at her with a face that read equal parts aroused and understanding. "Oui… yes, you need to get inside. I don't want to get you in trouble." She paused to think about that for a second, and then smiled. "Well, I do. But not REALLY, you know?"

Cosima grinned and nodded. "I know exactly what you mean, believe me." Then she sighed, pressing her forehead against Delphine's and trying to will herself to move. She was afraid that once she got out of the car and went inside, somehow all of it would cease to be. Everything would just go back to the way it was before. For some reason, she was very scared of losing Delphine. Cosima had never really had her heart broken before, but she instinctively knew Delphine could hurt her like that.

She felt Delphine's nose brush against hers and she sighed again, opening her eyes to meet Delphine's gaze. The way Delphine was looking at her said she knew something was wrong… she sensed Cosima's hesitation and was worried. "What's wrong, Cosima?"

"Sorry," Cosima said. "I'm just… "

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but I want you to know that you can trust me," Delphine said, giving Cosima a heartwarming smile that made her want to tell Delphine absolutely everything about herself. But for now, the truth about how she felt was enough.

"Well, girls like me sort of dream of girls like you falling for us and saying 'To hell with it!' to all stereotypes and everything. You're this perfect 10 gorgeous French cheerleader and I'm the geeky president of the science club. Usual odds would say we'd probably never exchange words, let alone be making out in a hot tub. And if we did by chance have a thing or whatever, it would be an experimental thing on your part and I would end up being heartbroken and humiliated when you decide you're straight and would much rather have someone like… I dunno… Paul Dierden. And it's even worse because you're also super sweet and wicked smart and okay yeah, I'm babbling now. I'm super sorry… it's not even like we're _TOGETHER _or anything. Guess I'm just sort of trying to be proactive about it…" She broke off with a nervous chuckle, hoping she didn't seem like a total spazz.

Delphine studied her for a few seconds that seemed a lot longer than what they were, nibbling adorably on her lower lip before saying, "Well I'm not much of a… how do you say it? A… gambler?" Cosima nodded. "But I think I would bet on this… whatever _THIS _is. No matter what the odds were supposed to be. People are always so much more than what we label them as. You're so much more than the 'geeky science club president' and I would hope I am more than the French cheerleader. I've never considered bisexuality for myself. But I don't have a problem with how I feel about you. And just so you know how I feel about you… I really, _really _like you, Cosima. It's quite scary how much. Especially since we only just met."

Cosima thought her heart was going to beat right out of her chest. "I… really, _really _like you too, Delphine. A whole hell of a lot, actually," Cosima said nervously. Delphine beamed at her, reaching out to stroke her cheek.

"So… would you like to be, as you said… _together?" _Delphine asked with a hint of shyness in her voice that Cosima hadn't heard before. "I've never really asked anyone this, especially not in English, so I don't even know if I'm saying it right."

It was Cosima's turn to flash her brightest smile, placing one of her hands over Delphine's that was still on her cheek, turning her face to press a kiss to Delphine's palm. "You're asking me to be your girlfriend? Like… exclusive and official and all that stuff?" She gave Delphine a hopeful look. She couldn't even believe this was happening.

"Oui, I am," Delphine said, nodding.

"Hmmm… say it in French," Cosima teased, leaning in closer to Delphine.

"Veux-tu être ma copine, Cosima?" Delphine purred, and the seductive tone of her voice practically made Cosima squirm in her seat as she leaned the rest of the way into Delphine.

"Mmm… oui," Cosima sighed as their lips brushed. "Yes, definitely yes…"

"Dieu merci," Delphine moaned as she pressed her lips more firmly against Cosima's. "Because pretending at school would be terrible."

Cosima grinned into Delphine's kiss. "Everyone's gonna be wondering how I got the hottest chick in school."

"Second hottest," Delphine murmured. "I have the first."

"Smooooth Cormier. I'm impressed," Cosima teased, forcing herself to pull away from Delphine's lips for the time being. "Shit, I really don't wanna go inside now. But on the bright side, my dad will have an interesting story to tell his coworkers about me." The look on Delphine's face was priceless and Cosima succumbed to a fit of the giggles. "No, babe… not in a bad way. I just don't usually provide the most interesting rebellious teenager stories for him. But I think leaving home single and coming back with a sexy French girlfriend qualifies as interesting, don't ya think?"

"Hmmm… oui. You get interesting and I get rebellious. My parents will be very surprised at me having a girlfriend," Delphine said. Cosima automatically looked worried but Delphine reassured her. "But they will be fine with it. It will just surprise them because I've never liked girls before. They have gay friends, so it should be no problem. Plus how could they not like you?"

"True, I am pretty great," Cosima agreed, poking out her tongue. Then they both sighed at the exact same time, prompting simultaneous giggles. "I guess I better get inside."

"Yes… oh, but wait!" Delphine opened her door and was around to Cosima's side in an instant, opening the door for her and grabbing her bag out of the floorboard.

"Oohhh beautiful AND chivalrous? I could definitely get used to this," Cosima said playfully as she hopped out of the car.

"At your service, ma cherie," Delphine replied as she shut the door. The French endearment brought a dreamy smile to Cosima's lips.

"Be careful with that 'at your service' stuff. You might just give me ideas," Cosima warned in a faux-menacing tone, looping an arm around Delphine's neck as she leaned back against the car.

"I doubt you need much help," Delphine teased, giving Cosima a kiss that was just deep and long enough to make her want more, before pulling away. "Should I walk you to your door?"

"I think I can take it from here, baby," Cosima said.

_Plus if I get you that far, I doubt I'll be able to stop until I get you to my room._

"I like that," Delphine said shyly, blushing and looking down at her feet for a second. "You calling me baby." Then they were standing there smiling at each other like a couple of idiots… until Delphine sighed and handed Cosima her bag.

"Text me when you get home?" Cosima asked. "So I know you got there safely."

"Oui," Delphine said happily, leaning in to kiss Cosima quickly. "See you soon, ma cherie."

Then Delphine was getting in her car, and Cosima was walking up her driveway, trying her hardest not to skip with glee. Had all that really just happened? It seemed too perfect to be real. As she got to her front door, she turned back around to see Delphine still there, making sure she got in okay. She turned the key in the lock and blew Delphine a kiss, which Delphine returned automatically.

Cosima went inside, closing the door behind her and leaning against it. A completely content smile slowly spread across her face and she let herself do a little dance. _I'm dating the hottest, most amazing girl in school! _She sang it to herself under her breath.

"Pics or it didn't happen."

"HOLY SHIT DAD, ARE YOU TRYING TO GIVE ME A HEART ATTACK?!"

Malcolm was just coming out of the kitchen with a glass of water, one eyebrow quirked at Cosima.

"No, I'm saying I want proof, Miss Goody Two-Shoes. What is my future daughter-in-law like?"

Cosima groaned. "Oh come on dad, you're not gonna be one of THOSE parents, are you?"

"It's every father's right to make his child's dating life Hell. But probably not. I just want bragging rights. Anything worth bragging about?"

"Umm… well she's a cheerleader, she's French, and she thought she was straight until she met me…"

Malcolm took a long, contemplative drink of his water before walking over to Cosima and sticking his hand out. At first Cosima was confused but then she realized what he was doing. They fist-bumped.

"That's my girl. You got that irresistible Niehaus charm from me." He started to walk off but then he stopped and looked back. "You were like 2 minutes late, by the way. But I'll overlook it this time." Then he shot her a wink and went upstairs.

Cosima shook her head and smiled. _Yeah, this year is starting off amazingly!_


	8. Chapter 8

Sleep didn't come easily to Cosima that night. She was so high off of the events of the past few hours, plus she and Delphine kept sending sleepy, happy Snapchats to one another. Eventually she drifted off as the sun started to rise. When she woke up, it was mid-afternoon and she was feeling surprisingly blissful. It probably had something to do with the fluffy dreams she'd had, which was also surprising considering she'd gone to bed more than a little turned on.

She slipped on a tank top and some shorts and went downstairs to pour herself a bowl of cereal. She was sitting at the counter eating and scrolling through a bunch of drunk texts Tony had sent her (he'd made it home safely after all) when her mom popped her head around the corner.

"Mornin' wild child," Briona said perkily. "Did you have fun last night?"

"Loads," Cosima said around a mouthful of Lucky Charms. "You mean Dad didn't say anything to you?"

"Oh of course he did! I just wanted to pry more information out of you on my own." Briona paused for a moment and stepped further into the room. "Your dad's on his way back from the airport with Jasmine now."

"OH MY GOSH! Jazz gets back today?!" Cosima couldn't believe she had forgotten. Her younger sister had been off visiting their grandparents for a few weeks.

"Yes, and apparently she's really upset about missing the first week of school. She said that it's important to cement your reputation the first week of seventh grade or middle school will just be a lonely experience." Both mother and daughter rolled their eyes dramatically and laughed.

"Ah, the angsty youth of today…" Cosima joked.

"Indeed. Which brings me back to my original intent of prying more information out of you about the party last night," Briona came to lean on the counter conspiratorially. "Soooo girl talk time! What's this girl's name? Is she smart? She better be smart. You know I won't allow my daughter to settle for someone who's all beauty and no brains."

"Mama! Yes… she's really smart, actually." Cosima couldn't contain a smile. "Her name is Delphine. She is thinking of studying immunology. She's a bio nerd like me." Briona looked pleased with that, but was still looking at Cosima expectantly. Cosima sighed and gave in. "And she's also really, REALLY pretty and nice and I guess maybe the French thing isn't so bad either…"

"Your father mentioned she was straight?" Briona was cutting right to the point.

"Well, I think… maybe she thought she was. But now she's reconsidering her sexuality. I don't know. She says she really likes me and doesn't have a problem with it and that her parents won't either."

"Okay..." Briona nodded slowly, looking compassionately at her daughter. "I'm not trying to discourage you, love. A mother just worries about these things, you know? And not all parents are as cool as your father and I." She gave a quick wink. "I can't wait to meet her… we WILL be meeting her, right? Eventually?"

"Of course… eventually! Like, maybe in a couple of years," Cosima said, sticking her tongue out at her mom.

"Oh don't make me ground you, brat," Briona teased. Then there was the sound of the front door being opened, and the shuffling of feet.

"We're in here!" Cosima called out.

"SIMA!" a familiar voice called back, preceding the preteen bounding into the room. Cosima hopped down from her chair at the counter to hug her little sister.

"Hey gremblin," Cosima said affectionately. "How are grandma and grandpa?"

"Still old, still give the best presents," Jazz grinned in a way that mirrored Cosima's own. "Check out the killer outfit!" Jazz did a turn to show off her new clothes. Most of it was pink and Cosima couldn't help but think that her sister and Alison Hendrix would get along marvelously. "Grandma took me shopping, obvs. And she's gonna take you when you come visit in a few months! They miss you. Grandpa especially. He wants your advice on these plants he's cross-pollinating for his garden."

"Ooohh I'll have to call him about that! Last time he tried cross-pollination it was an epic failure!"

"Are you just not gonna hug your mama, or what?" Briona huffed with her hands on her hips. Jazz giggled and went to her mom, hugging her tightly.

Cosima smiled. Her mom and sister looked so much alike. It was something that used to upset her, back when she was in elementary school and it was apparently obvious to everyone that Cosima was adopted and Jasmine was not. It had also been the reason why, in middle school, Cosima had asked her mom to put her hair in dreads like Briona's. There had never been any jealousy of Jazz. She and her sister were always unbelievably close and hardly ever fought. But Cosima loved her mom so much and she WAS her mom, too. She wanted to feel close to her, and the dreads just seemed natural and right to her. She wore them with pride, and honestly they suited her.

"By the way, Jazz, your sister actually is NOT forever alone," Malcolm said, coming in to the kitchen. "I think you just won the bet."

"YOU GUYS BET ON ME?!"

"At least you know I was on your side!" Jazz pointed out. "And who is it? You better have a cool girlfriend!"

"Glad to know you guys have a list of requirements for my potential suitors," Cosima mused dryly, but she was holding back laughter. "Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to go be anywhere but here right now. Probably my room, but if that changes I'll let you know." Then she was attempting to stomp up the stairs, but she tripped halfway up and everyone laughed. "UGH! You guys are so hard to pretend to be mad at!"

She had barely closed the door to her room when her phone beeped with a text message. It was from Cal. He wanted to meet up and go over what photos to submit for the paper on Monday. Cosima inwardly hoped that she hadn't taken too many photos of Delphine… that would be embarrassing.

* * *

Monday took longer to arrive than expected. Cosima thought to herself that she'd never been so anxious to get a weekend over with. But when she skated up to the courtyard out in front of the school, she was pleasantly surprised to see her old gang and the new gang… well, she guessed they were all one big gang now… hanging around outside under the big tree. It looked like something out of a teen movie. Jesse and Helena were throwing a Frisbee back and forth, Cal and Sarah were canoodling shamelessly, and Alison seemed to be discussing hair products with… Tony. Well, that was an interesting development. She was watching all of this unfold when she felt a warm hand slide into hers.

"Bonjour, ma cherie," Delphine murmured as she pressed a kiss to her cheek.

Cosima felt a blush spread across her cheeks and an equally warm smile found its way onto her face. "Hey, you…" She felt a bit awkward for a second because nothing she could call Delphine sounded as romantic and sexy as 'ma cherie.' How Delphine was able to make a messy braid and a letterman jacket look glamorous, Cosima had no idea. It set her skills at conversation back a few years, but Cosima wasn't going to complain.

"Walk you to your locker?" Delphine offered. Classes were due to start in less than 10 minutes and everyone was already headed in.

"Okay, the chivalrous thing is adorable but we have to switch out every now and then, deal?" Cosima suggested.

"Hmm… oui," Delphine agreed as she laced their fingers together and started off towards the main building. More than a few people noticed them as they walked by, and that didn't go unnoticed by either girl. "I don't think I've ever attracted so much attention before."

"Then you must be oblivious because people drool over you wherever you go," Cosima teased. "But if it bothers you, we can be less obvious." She went to remove her hand from Delphine's and Delphine tightened her grip slightly.

"Non, it doesn't bother me," Delphine reassured her. "It's just a bit strange how many people are interested in our lives."

"Tell me about it," Cosima said as they got to her locker. "Last week was a real shock for me, personally. No one knew my name before then and now everyone knows me."

"Lucky them," Delphine said with a flirty smile, prompting Cosima to reply with one of her own.

"Flattery will get you nowhere, Cormier," Cosima giggled.

"We'll see," Delphine threatened playfully, winking at Cosima in the way that made her stomach do a little flip.

"Okay fine, MAYBE it will get you to second base but that's as far as it will get you. I'm a classy lady, after all." The look of confusion on Delphine's face was just great, and Cosima went to open her locker. She immediately cursed under her breath. "Dammit! I left my jacket at home. And my first class is always freezing!"

"Here, you can wear mine," Delphine offered immediately, starting to shrug off her letterman. "Besides, isn't it some sort of American high school dating custom that you wear your sweetheart's school jacket?"

"Awww babe," Cosima couldn't hold in how adorable she thought it was. "Yeah, I suppose it is. But I don't wanna take your jacket."

"I'm offering. And besides, I bet it will look cuter on you. Try it on." Cosima held out her arms and let Delphine slip the jacket onto her. It was definitely a bit long in the arms, but that was always sort of the point with wearing your _sweetheart's _(They were sweethearts… how amazing was that?) letterman jacket. All the girls she saw wearing their boyfriend's jackets were practically swallowed up in them. With Delphine's it wasn't that bad, but it was enough to be noticeable.

"See, I like it even better on you than I do on me," Delphine smiled happily. "Hmm… I see now why guys like looking at girls in their jackets."

"Oh no, you're not going to be one of those possessive girlfriends, are you?" Cosima asked jokingly as she inspected the cheerleading and volleyball patches on the arms.

"I don't think so. Hmm… ," Delphine's expression went dark and sensual all of a sudden, and then she grabbed the lapels of the jacket and pulled Cosima close to her. "Unless you like that."

Cosima shuddered and had to resist the urge to press her body very shamefully against Delphine's. "I might like it a little too much, actually. Feel free to do this again when no one is looking, though. Speaking of which, people are definitely looking."

Some guy across the hall was shaking his head, frowning. Cosima was sure she heard him whisper to his friend, "What a waste." She was just about to lay into him when she felt another tug at the lapels of the coat and then Delphine's lips were on hers. It was a passionate kiss, and it definitely made her toes curl, but it wasn't very long.

"Damn, Delphine," Cosima whispered against her girlfriend's lips. "What was that about?"

"Well, I figured not kissing you at such a perfect opportunity… THAT would be a waste," Delphine spoke this loud enough for that kid to hear. He blushed furiously and walked away. The friend whom he'd spoken to mouthed 'sorry' towards Cosima and shot her a thumbs up.

"Oh good! You two are official! Now people can stop making bets as to when you'll hook up or start going out," Alison said as she walked up, along with the rest of their friends.

"What is it with people and betting on my love life?" Cosima grumbled good-naturedly.

"So it would be a bad time to mention I was in on it?" Tony cracked. Cosima went to smack him, but he dodged it. "So abusive. Watch out for this one, Delphine. If you need a shoulder to cry on, Tony's here for you." The bell rang for class before Cosima could come up with a witty retort, and everyone started drifting off in their own directions.

"Well, you walked me to my locker, it's only fair I walk you to your first class," Cosima said.

"Yes ma'am," Delphine said in her best American accent, which was somehow worse than Cosima's French one.

"Sooo…" Cosima began as they walked, "My parents sort of know about you already."

"Really? What did they say?"

"They're really happy. They know I'm… well, not straight. And they're totally cool with it. They just want me to be happy."

"They sound amazing. I haven't told mine, yet. But I'm not very good at finding the right words to say. Maybe you could… help me with that?" Delphine looked hopeful.

"Oh! Sure. I mean, you know me… a savant with words and all…"

"One of many things I'm sure you're quite proficient at, ma cherie," Delphine teased affectionately.

"Just you wait and see, baby… just you wait and see."


End file.
